Orville Clarke, Gleaner Writer
The improving three-year-old grey gelding, GAMBOA (left), ridden by Shane Ellis, disposes of highly fancied MINISTEROFJUSTICE (Dane Nelson) to win the eighth race over 1100 metres at Caymanas Park, on Saturday, at odds of 3-1. - Colin Hamilton/freelance photographer
IT's holiday racing at Caymanas Park, the Heroes Day 11-race programme featuring the Hi-Pro Stables Choice Feed Trophy race over 1200 metres for native bred maiden two-year-olds; and the Governor General's Stakes (grade one) over 2000 metres for three-year-olds and up.
With today designated Hi-Pro Day, nearly all the races on the card are named after Hi-Pro products, such as the wonder blue, horse supplement, ultra sweet feed and 707 daily essential.
Fourteen juveniles are slated for the $850,000 Hi-Pro Stables Choice Feed Trophy, among them five newcomers.
They include SIR ARCHIBALD, HE'S REALLY OK and FABULOUSCONNECTION, all of whom are well forward in condition and should prove highly competitive.
Keen competition
These three, in addition to SHE'S MAGIC who has run encouragingly in both her races so far, should ensure keen competition, but it's the Richard Azan-trained FABULOUSCONNECTION that catches my fancy, having looked sharp at exercise.
Also on the card is the traditional Heroes Day feature for the Norman Manley Memorial Cup over the round five course, this for $220,000-$190,000 claimers.
The Governor General's Stakes, the final prep for horses eyeing the November 8 Superstakes, has attracted only six starters and, this time around, most of the big names are absent.
They include last year's winner RUM TALK, Superstakes winner MAJOR MAYER, the season's top stayer ALLIEDFORCE, not to mention Triple Crown winner ALSAFRA whose connections have elected to bypass the race, claiming it's too close to the Superstakes.
Despite the absence of the big guns, the race should still prove interesting, as Superstakes hopefuls AD INFINITUM, MR. BLAIR, PRIME MINISTER and GOOD COMPANY will be gunning for the major slice of the $1.1 million purse.
Top of the scales
AD INFINITUM, who chased home MAJOR MAYER in the recent Viceroy Trophy grade-one race over 1800 metres, sits pride and place at the top of the scales with 60.5kg, but being the class horse of the field, he can prove equal to the task with in-form jockey Dane Nelson riding for trainer Anthony 'Baba' Nunes.
The lightly weighted MR. BLAIR (Carlton Malcolm up) looks his principal danger with only 49.5kg. The three-year-old colt from the stables of Noel Ennevor is coming off a recent win in overnight allowance company and remembering that he was fourth to ALSAFRA in the June 14 Digicel Derby, cannot be underestimated.
Other firm fancies on the card are EARTHWINDANDFIRE to go one better in the third race, CENTANNI in the fifth, RISING HURRICANE over ZULU PRINCE in the sixth, ACCOMPONG in the seventh for the Ace Supercentre Trophy and PUNDIT in the eighth.
