By ORVILLE CLARKE, Freelance Writer
KING OF THE BAND, ridden by Shane Ellis, leading home the 9-5 favourite FUZZ BUSTER (Andrew Nunes) in Division I of the $100,000 conditional claiming race over the straight five course at Caymanas Park on Saturday. The 8-y-o gelding won at odds of 2-1.
SATURDAY'S RACING Pools game proved difficult to unravel, so much so that 29 points was the winning level.
Seven punters shared the category two first dividend prize of $55,000, each receiving $6,135.70.
With maximum 32 points eluding everyone for the second straight week, the carryover to this week stands at $152,266.50, ensuring a first prize of $400,000.
Highest amount, $7,722.20, goes to a MoBay player who spent $1,080.00. He claimed one first, three second and six third dividends.
A breakdown of the other prizes is as follows:
42 second dividends of $375.60 each for 28 points.
103 third dividends of $76.60 each for 27 points.
Sales totalled $318,741.50 on 1,497 coupons -- up from $296,474.00 and 1,530 coupons the previous week.
While the game produced no startling upset, as was the case on the previous Saturday when EXCHANGE ONLY struck at 160-1, the going was by no means easy. Reason being that most of the races had no fewer than four or five horses with good winning claims and this was reflected in the results.
For instance, DEJA VU won the second race as the 2-1 favourite, but despite this, at least four other horses in the field were well backed, namely, TIGERINTHEWOODS (5-2), KING'S HIGHWAY (3-1), PHANTOM J (4-1) and ELEGANCE (9-2).
Indeed, DEJA VU was the only favourite to oblige among the Pools race. KING OF THE BAND, who defied top-weight of 57.0kg in the sixth race over the straight five course, was a heavily backed second favourite at 2-1.
Another second choice to floor the odds on the favourite was TURBULENCE at 3-2. Ridden by apprentice Paul Francis, the three-year-old son of Restless Thief broke winging from the number one post position and showed rivals a clean pair of heels in winning by 4 1/2 lengths from 4-5 favourite BANJUHAR.
While TURBULENCE and KING OF THE BAND had their share of supporters, winners such as GUARDIAN ANGEL (6-1), LADY NAJEEBAN (5-1), COLONEL GRAMPS (9-2), CHUCKY and JIG YOUNG (both at 3-1) hurt punters collectively.
LADY NAJEEBAN gave her supporters some really anxious moments in winning the closing 1700-metre race for bottom of the barrel claimers in a blanket finish involving three horses.
Outpaced in the backstretch after missing the break, LADY NAJEEBAN made good headway to grab the lead from RED LADY in the last furlong. However, she just held on from the fast-finishing outsider SCARLET ROYAL (84-1) and also OSHIN who came a trifle late on the outside.
LADY NAJEEBAN was the first winner among senior jockeys for apprentice Garfield Morgan on a day when fellow apprentice Andrew Nunes also scored his maiden win aboard COLONEL GRAMPS in the opening Pools race.
The four-year-old gelding, who had been a source of disappointment ealier on, stormed through on the inside rails from early in the straight to whip the one-paced favourite CARDINAL LAW by nine widening lengths.
