England’s Rose to bloom in Overnight Allowance sprint
WAYNE Dacosta’s England’s Rose should start the new year on a winning note, as she is believed to be a cut above her eight rivals in a three-year-old and upwards Restricted Overnight Allowance contest, especially at a distance of five furlongs (1,000m) round.
This top-rated quick sprint which has a purse of $1 million up for grabs is fittingly set to bring the curtains down on the nine-race programme at Caymanas Park today.
The decorated Dacosta and his connections will be hoping for another good season with the fleet-footed England’s Rose, who secured two wins and three third-place finishes in her six outings last year, and today’s performance should get the ball rolling for the year ahead.
England’s Rose could only manage third behind Universal Boss and Capturemyship down the five-straight course on December 23, but with not much present by way of competition here, she should set off in front and prove hard to get back to, provided she is fully fit, as she is known to have injury issues. Champion jockey Anthony Thomas will again do the honours.
Richard Azan’s Eroy, by way of class, should prove the main danger to England’s Rose, but the fact that the American-bred colt has not been in the best of form in recent times, coupled with the fact that he is not much of a sprinter, should prove his undoing.
Eroy, who has been reunited with customary jockey Omar Walker for this assignment, has been at the races in the last three weeks over distances above five furlongs and failed to live up to expectations.
There is no doubt that Eroy is a capable runner, having secured three wins and two third-place finishes in 11 starts last season, but again he may find it hard to contend with the speed of England’s Rose.
Enuffisenuff, one of two runners in the field for trainer Steven Todd, is the only other runner of note here, as he steps back up to Overnight Allowance in a bid for a second-consecutive win, following a 3 ½-length victory in high claiming company on December 12.
Enuffisenuff is still comfortable at this level and should again run well to add to his three wins, two second and three third-place finishes from 12 starts last year.
The other Steven Todd trainee Corazon, to be ridden by Paul Francis, showed little in his seven outings last year, but tends to pop up when least expected and could put in a surprising performance today.
Rohan Kabir, Lala Diva, Miss In Kiss, Anaso and Graydon are expected to have little impact on the outcome, as their best hope will be for a minor placing.
Meanwhile, seven runners are set to contest the City of Kingston Centenary Cup — the lone trophy event on the cards — a three-year-old and upwards claiming event over a mile (1,600 metres).
Robert Pearson’s Purple Wayne, Ryan Darby’s Royal Vibes and the Alford Brown-conditioned Key Witness are the main contenders for the lion’s share of the $750,000 purse.
Ones to Watch
Race 1) Prince Sammo/luminous Power/sharp Skirt/alexa’s Star
Race 2) Royal Vibes/purple Wayne/ Key Witness/bold Sami
Race 3) Kiah/killer Bee/sir Puddington/radical
Race 4) Cup A Soup/blue Epiphany/ Lady Bastipur/miss AJC
Race 5) He’sthereallinks/moviestar/ Congrats Suckie/golden Emperor
Race 6) Lava Boy/comandante Lunar/ Sniper Man/nydan
Race 7) KD Rocket/casual Affair/ Striking Lady/no Work Permit
Race 8) Sir John/three Times Lucky/ Whispering Magic/hilly’s Vision
Race 9) England’s Rose/eroy/ Enuffisenuff/corazon