Orville Clarke, Freelance Writer
BULLET TRAIN (right), one of four winners for champion jockey Omar Walker, sprints clear of highly fancied CLASSY BOY PETE (left), with Trevor Simpson aboard, and the grey NASATOL (Dane Nelson) to win the seventh race over the straight five course for Open Allowance horses last Saturday at Cay-manas Park. One of three winners for trainer Wayne DaCosta, BULLET TRAIN was a 7-5 favourite in the seven-horse field. - Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer
Despite throwing up a five-star banker in the impressive three-year-old colt ROYAL IMAGE, the Pick-9 had no takers at Caymanas Park on Saturday.
As a result, the carryover to this Saturday's race meet, the first leg of the two-day Easter Carnival, stands at $1.68 million. Twelve punters with seven of nine winners received consolation prizes of $14,827.00 each.
The second Super-6 embracing races seven to 12, proved difficult to unravel and in the end was caught by only four punters, each receiving a hefty $337,651.00.
This one included the highly fancied AHWHOFAH (5-2) and 1-9 favourite ROYAL IMAGE, respective winners of the Thornbird and Prince Consort Stakes (Guineas trials) and other popular winners such as 7-5 favourite BULLET TRAIN and NATURALLY ROYAL at 2-1 in the nightpan. But with NATURAL ATLANTA scoring an 11-1 upset in the eighth and TOO HOT TO TROT (4-1) chipping in with a mild upset in the 10th, the number of winners was always going to be small.
The Patrick Fong owned and trained NATURAL ATLANTA has now won twice from 23 career starts and in both instances she upset the apple cart.
Meanwhile, trainer Lawrence 'Cummy' Freemantle saddled two winners on the 12-race programme in JACK BE GOOD in the first race and MAGIC MOMENT at 9-5 in the second, the latter marking his 100th career win.
Freemantle saddled his first winner, KING OF THE BAND, in October of 2001 and has done fairly well since.
Another level
He has apparently taken his career to another level since the start of the season to hold down fourth place in the top 10. Indeed, MAGIC MOMENT, who scrambled home by a short head, was his 10th winner of the season. Only reigning champion Wayne DaCosta and Anthony 'Baba' Nunes have saddled more.
The Nunes-trained ROYAL IMAGE (Shane Ellis up) turned in another effortless display to win the Prince Consort Stakes by all of 14 lengths, covering the distance (1400m) in the smart time of 1:24.3 which was two and one-fifth of a second faster than the time returned by the filly AHWHOFAH in the Thornbird Stakes earlier in the afternoon.
ROYAL IMAGE is on a collision course with the brilliant unbeaten colt COMMANDER ZERO in the April 5 2000 Guineas over a mile. And judging from the dominance both have shown on the track, this is a clash worth going miles to see.
