By Orville Clarke, Freelance WriterCHAMPION TRAINER Wayne DaCosta highlighted yesterday's midweek programme at Caymanas Park with three winners, including 6-5 favourite PREMIER SOLUTION in the Oswald "Ossie" Steele Memorial Cup (claiming $330,000-$290,000) over 1200 metres.
DaCosta, who a week ago received the coveted None Such Award for his record breaking achievement last year, also posted his classic aspirant GOOD COMPANY (6-5 fav) in the first race for native bred three-year-olds over 1600 metres and another favourite, TIGERINTHEWOODS at 2-1 in the seventh race over the straight five course.
All three horses were ridden by different jockeys. In the day's feature, in-form Clive Lynch bided his time in third as VISIONARY (2-1) and STRAIGHT SIX (7-1) hooked up on the lead in the field of six.
STRAIGHT SIX disposed of VISIONARY leaving the 600-metre pole and turned for home with PREMIER SOLUTION, at which stage TSUNAMI raced in touch with highly fancied RESTLESS PEGASUS (8-5) surprisingly outsped.
But STRAIGHT SIX ran out of a true line approaching the distance, allowing the ever present PREMIER SOLUTION (rails) to collar him early in the last furlong.
However, Lynch had to shake up his mount to gain the ascendancy 100 metres out, keeping on strongly to beat STRAIGHT SIX by a length. RESTLESS PEGASUS stayed on for third, another four lengths away, but never really posed a threat.
A 4-y-o chestnut filly by Corsicana out of the Element mare Gimme A Light, PREMIER SOLUTION is owned by Esteban Inc. Limited and bred by Jeremy and Kim Cooper. This was her third win from her past six starts.
Lynch had a second winner on the card when INCORPORATE (2-1) made all for a decisive win in the 3-y-o maiden race over a mile. The chestnut filly from the stables of Desmond Shand, turned back a feeble challenge from ROCKET GUITAR (21-1) entering the straight and kept on strongly to hold the highly fancied UNLEADED (8-5) at bay by 1 1/4 lengths.
Lynch, as a result, has assumed the lead from Shane Ellis in the jockeys' standing, moving to 11 winners with Ellis, who was winless, on 10, ahead of Panamanian Ameth Robles on eight. Robles was aboard TIGERINTHEWOODS in the seventh race.
On a day marked by a number of upsets, TIGERINTHEWOODS and PREMIER SOLUTION were the only winning favourites. Leading the upsets were the Alvin Carnegie-trained SIR VISHNU KUMAR at 60-1 in the second race, followed by SIR KRISHNA BABA at 26-1, SPLINTER LADY at 13-1 and MEADOW STAR at 11-1.
SIR VISHNU KUMAR provided apprentice Dave Blackwood with his first winner.
Outpaced a bit for the first half of the race as highly fancied JUSTIN JORDON (8-5) made most, SIR VISHNU KUMAR was produced on the outside approaching the home turn. He grabbed the lead early in the straight, but had to be ridden out with hands and heels to thwart ever present 15-1 chance CALL ME SACH on the inside, winning by three quarters of a lengths.
