KINGSTON, Jamaica - Apprentice Oshane Nugent piloting the Steven Todd-trained 10-year-old El Cliente, took the widest path at the top of the home stretch. El Cliente galloped into the lead and ran well from that point to score by 1 ½ lengths in the first of 11 races.
Formal Gladiator, the shortest-priced favourite on the card, won by nearly two lengths, but in-form reinsman Dane Dawkins had to work hard in the stretch run to land the odds for trainer Patrick Lynch to win the second event. Lynch improved his tally to eight wins this season.
Andre Martin replaced absent Dane Nelson, the declared rider, and brought champion trainer Anthony Nunes’ Den Den with a well-timed late effort to secure the third.
Champion jockey Christopher Mamdeen earned his easiest 10 per cent commission as trainer Errol Waugh’s US import Alhamdulillah won the fourth by 12 ½ lengths.
Showing no sign of lacking in experience the Johnny Wilmot trained Baby Star won the fifth by 4 ½ lengths. The four-year-old filly making a belated debut gave apprentice Nugent his second winner on the card.
Looking much improved physically, Neive Graham’s Breaking Storm (Paul Francis) was posted in unbeatable condition to win the sixth by eight lengths.
The seventh event went to the consistent Nuclear Thunder trained by former jockey Phillip Elliott to give Mamdeen a rare winner. It was only the sixth winner of the year for the champion jockey who was sidelined with a riding infringement eight-day ban earlier this year.
The vast majority of regular backers of owner/trainer Anthony Smith’s six-year-old gelding Dallas lost faith and neglected to do so on this occasion. It must have been extremely disappointing to see apprentice Raddesh Roman celebrating a four-length victory at odds of 34/1 at the end of the eighth event.
Trainer Vincent Atkinson had his third career success under an outstanding performance in the saddle from Javaniel Patterson, who paced the front-running filly Sensational Satin perfectly. Sensational Satin repelled all challenges to score by just over one length in the ninth.
Ian Parsard’s Father Patrick (Omar Walker) just escaped the late challenge of wide-running Duke (Robert Halledeen) to last home by three-parts-of-a-length in the 10th event.
The nightcap was won predictably by former champion trainer Wayne DaCosta’s Awesome Aviator. Sent off as the odds-on favourite, and one of the early back-markers, a robust late effort secured victory by three lengths with apprentice Carlos Blake aboard.
THE AWARDS: The Training Feat Award is presented to trainer Johnny Wilmot for the performance of debutant Baby Star. The filly also gets the Best Winning Gallop as she did absolutely nothing wrong in her very delayed first appearance. Javaniel Patterson deserves his first Jockeyship Award for a master class demonstration of front-running tactics aboard Sensational Satin.
