Lightning Lily upsets Nunes’ duo in Race 9
MONEYNEVERSLEEP (left), with Dane Nelson aboard, capturing the eighth race at Caymanas Park yesterday. LIGHTNING LILY scored a determined 13-1 upset over Anthony Nunes’ pair, BLUE TRADITION and DONTAE, winning yesterday’s 1500-metre restricted stakes by a widening three and a quarter lengths.
Conditioned by former champion trainer Philip Feanny, LIGHTNING LILY had never gone past six furlongs in 10 starts but stayed on strongly in the straight to turn back 7-5 favourite DONTAE, who came with what appeared a winning run, coming off the home turn.
Breaking sharply from postposition four with Paul Francis, LIGHTNING LILY took on Nunes’ A.P.I. on the lead down the backstretch and straightened just in front of a wound-up DONTAE, attacking on the outside with in-form Panamanian Dick Cardenas, while BLUE TRADITION closed on the inside.
However, fitted with blinkers, replacing the visor with which Feanny experimented for her previous race, LIGHTNING LILY rallied strongly to repel both attackers.
The three-year-old filly won in a time of 1:32.3, the longest shot of the day, resulting in a $3.2 million carry-over of the Twilight Pick-6 to next Saturday’s Superstakes Day.
Francis rode two winners on the 10-race card, booting home 6-5 favourite TEN CARATS in the seventh.
Wesley Henry and Kemar Jackson also rode two-timers. Henry made all aboard both his winners, FIRST’K’BOY and JESSE’S FAVOURITE, in the second and sixth races, respectively.
Jackson was awarded the fifth race in the stewards’ room aboard 8-1 shot Me. LYNDHURST after first-past-the-post FLYING MACHINE, with Prince Holder, was disqualified and placed fourth for hindering KANALOA in the stretch run.
PRINCESS CAULA ran on late in the closing event with Jackson to win the closing event, nabbing 6-5 favourite RUBY ROSE close home.
Superstakes weekend will feature the 10-furlong Superstakes, six-furlong Caribbean Sprint and Invitational Mile, plus Sunday’s Yearling Sale for which 80-odd horses are expected to face the auctioneer’s hammer.