Ainsley Walters, Freelance Writer

MEGAFONE, the telecommunications arm of investor, Carlos Hill's Cash Plus empire, is set to assume sponsorship of Superstakes Day at Caymanas Park from long-time title-sponsor Red Stripe, handing the group the country's biggest raceday outside of the Jamaica Derby.

Superstakes Day, first staged in 1975 by Red Stripe, attracts the best horses in training at Caymanas Park competing for big purses, especially the 2000-metre Superstakes for Graded Stakes runners, which will be worth $4.5m this year.

The Gleaner's Racing Along understands the deal is all but a done one as Megafone has already made a $3m deposit and had a team conduct a site visit at Caymanas Park, yesterday.

Both parties, Caymanas Track Limited and Megafone, are keeping details of the deal close to their chests, pending an official press launch.

However, indications are that horsemen and punters alike will be in for the usual goodies, cash and kind, as well as entertainment, associated with Superstakes Day at Caymanas Park.

Interestingly, Digicel, a rival cellular network, already sponsors the Digicel Jamaica Derby, which is also worth $4.5m and staged each June, pitting both entities in direct competition for a lucrative advertising source such as horseracing, which has the biggest weekly following of any sport in Jamaica.

Grabbing title-sponsorship of Superstakes Day at Caymanas Park is the latest of Hill's Cash Plus empire's notable acquisitions which include the 800-acre Drax Hall Estate in St. Ann and Hilton Kingston Hotel in the capital.

Megafone is extremely popular with Jamaicans as the cellular provider offers unlimited overseas calls to cell phones and land lines in North America, as well as land lines in the United Kingdom, for $900 per month and enables its local customers to talk free of charge.