By Cliff Williams, ContributorTRAINER Wayne DaCosta and jockey Trevor Simpson have become the toast of the racing fraternity as both have rewritten the record books in such an impressive manner that it is almost a certainty that these feats will remain largely unattainable for a very long time.
Incredibly DaCosta has managed to post in excess of 100 winners this year a feat which looks more remarkable when the fact that the stable sent out only one winner in January. For all I know this sort of dominance is rare these days anywhere on the globe.
Up to last Saturday, the trainer who won his first title 1984 and added another in 1999 had sent 103 horses to the winners enclosure with 87 finishing second, 57 third and 55 fourth from a record 456 starters. That rate of production must have meant a very demanding schedule for the stable staff.
While this has been an outstanding year for DaCosta one has to say that a record breaking performance from this outstanding professional is hardly surprising since he has maintained a position in the top ten, mostly in the top half, for nearly two decades.
The training of racehorses has been one of the most respected professions for well in excess of two hundred years and is one of the most intriguing of pastimes. It is based on sheer knowledge in most instances when decisions have to be made. I suppose some will say that luck plays a big part, but I am not so sure, since sound scientific principles and its application inform much of the course of action in the greater majority of cases.
It is interesting to note that the 2002 champion trainer designate, like his great counterpart Philip Feanny has done more than anyone else I know to remove the stigma attached to racing in terms of it being seen as inherently corrupt and what happens is pure chance that has no basis in science.
The very fact that they have been prepared to discus their horses openly has certainly gone a very long way to remove the Sport of Kings from the realm of mystification in Jamaica. Both gentlemen are a credit to their chosen profession. Incidentally trainer Feanny has saddled 73 winners for stakes of $23.7 million to DaCosta's $28.3 million. Both have accumulated stakes earnings in excess of the other eight top ten trainers combined.
From very early in Trevor Simpson's career it was quite predictable that he would have made a success of the profession of race riding. One could detect that apart from being a wonderful athlete he possessed the temperament for the emotional variables of the Sport of Kings, and brought a certain kind of passion as well.
For Simpson, winning became an obsession and he developed a focus, which is quite rare. It did not take many of the top trainers and owners long to realise that Simpson's ability was an asset critical in enhancing the chances of their horses to win. Punters also realised very early competitive reinsman career that backing his horses represented value for money and in my experience only Emelio Rodriquez and Winston Griffiths have enjoyed the emotional and fanatical support reserved for Simpson these days.
To become the jockey with the most wins, in excess of 167 for a racing year, must be very satisfying for a man who sometimes rarely allows himself the luxury of a smile, must have been very satisfying. Trevor Wayne Simpson has performed his promise.
