LURE OF LUCY to extend win streak in St Elizabeth Distaff
UNITED STATES-BRED LURE OF LUCY is the ante-post favourite to notch a fourth straight win when she lines up in Saturday’s St Elizabeth Distaff for fillies and mares, one of three co-features on Jamaica Day at Caymanas Park, topped by the six-million-dollar Jamaica Cup.
LURE OF LUCY, along with stablemate MAKE UP ARTIST and Gary Subratie’s AWESOME TREASURE, benefits from conditions which allow previous overnight-allowance winners to be eligible for the one-mile event, which carries a $1.6m purse.
However, the trio have been penalised with topweight 126lb, each allowing a half of the field 10lb, most noticeable being the weight swing of 10lb against LURE OF LUCY in fellow importee GO DEH GIRL’s favour.
Jason DaCosta’s LURE OF LUCY had only beaten GO DEH GIRL by a length and quarter at a mile on October 19, running in receipt of two pounds. Though benefiting from a 10lb weight swing in her favour, Anthony Nunes’GO DEH GIRL’s inconsistency reared its head when she returned October 31 to finish next-to-last at six and a half furlongs behind EXCESSIVE FORCE.
Another importee to watch in the event is Vincent Atkinson’s lightly raced BEST DAUGHTER EVER, who clocked 1:39.0 at a mile on September 25, a little shy of a month before LURE OF LUCY’s win at the trip in 1:40.1.
BEST DAUGHTER EVER is on a hat-trick of wins, having won by nearly eight lengths off an 11-month lay-up on August 21. Running at 116lb, BEST DAUGHTER EVER is in receipt of 10lb from LURE OF LUCY, making the foreigner a tempting prospect, even though her victory was against local-bred non-winners of four races.
DaCosta’s local-bred, MAKE UP ARTIST, appears hard done sharing 126lb at a mile, having finished down the track when stretched out at seven and a half furlongs in August. However, speedy MAKE UP ARTIST could serve as rabbit for LURE OF LUCY, who was forced to do the dirty work of chasing SUPERLUMINAL and EXCESSIVE FORCE off the lead last time out.
Though of LURE OF LUCY’s 1:40.1 might have been slower than BEST DAUGHTER EVER’s 1:39.0, the quality of opposition is in the DaCosta runner’s favour, having had the likes of return-winner EXCESSIVE FORCE behind when winning.
With stablemate MAKE UP ARTIST in the line-up to carry the pace, LURE OF LUCY should enjoy a more relaxed race as opposed to taking on the leaders too early with topweight. DaCosta, the leading trainer, appears to have the distaff in the bag as he seeks to dethrone two-time defending champion Nunes.