Jacko Links has keys to the city
RYAN DARBY’s JACKO LINKS is actually lowering his sights for this afternoon’s City of Kingston Centenary Cup, racing in a lower optional claiming group than the one he won a little over a month ago, beating WILSON at the exact distance of a mile.
Throw JACKO LINKS’ New Year’s Day run out the window at six and a half furlongs. Instead, note his effort at a mile the previous week in the Seymour ‘Foggy’ Mullings Memorial. Always prominent in fourth behind BAD BOY TRUMP, MY SUPER GIRL and HARRY’S TRAIN, he improved into third a furlong out, eventually relegated to sixth at the finish, beaten three and three-quarter lengths by the winner, BRANDY, who closed from off the pace.
That was a big run from JACKO LINKS after beating WILSON at a mile in an $850,000-$750,000 optional claiming for non-winners-of-four on November 24. He now faces $600,000-$500,000 optional claimers, including Richard Azan’s SIR PUDDINGTON returning off a threemonth layup.
SIR PUDDINGTON joins JACKO LINKS as four-year-olds in the seven-horse field but could be suspect with just two speed gallops under his girth for all of December, 1:03.4 for five furlongs on Christmas Eve, and 1:30.2 for seven, out the mile chute, last Saturday.
On the contrary, JACKO LINKS hardly missed a day at the races in November and is out for the third time in two weeks.
JACKO LINKS’ main threat is old stager BALLON D’OR, who won six races last year, four between August 26 and December 1, narrowly missing a seventh on December 15 when failing by threequarter length to beat down-in-class ROYAL VIBES in a $600,000-$500,000 optional claiming at seven and a half furlongs.
Just as effective at a mile, seven-yearold BALLON D’OR is lighter than JACKO LINKS, coming in at 112lb with apprentice Christopher Mamdeen. However, JACKO LINKS is expected to get first run on UNCLE VINNIE in a pace that might leave BALLON D’OR with too much ground to make up in the stretch run.
Note the switch from Linton Steadman with 121lb in the New Year’s Day Trophy to four-kilo claiming apprentice Reyan Lewis, ensuring that JACKO LINKS will carry 117lb at the trip he had won on November 24. WILSON returned on December 22 to beat in-form MR AMBASSADOR in a five-and-a-half furlong sprint, clocking a decent 1:06.3.