Elton Tucker, Assistant Sport Editor
Jockey Richie Mitchell is all smiles after booting home MAJOR MAYER in post-to-post fashion in the circular nine feature for the Royal Dad Trophy at Caymanas yesterday. MAJOR MAYER won at odds of 8-1 in the six-horse field. - Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer
MAJOR MAYER, an even money favourite, and I AM PAID FOR, at the generous odds of 7/2, ensured a feature race double for jockey Richard Mitchell on yesterday's ten-race card at Caymanas Park.
The Michael McIntosh-trained MAJOR MAYER captured the L.R. 'Bob' Mayall Memorial Trophy for graded stakes company over 1600 metres, while I AM PAID FOR won the J.W. 'Judge' Hardie Memorial Cup which was confined to the $470,000-$420,000 claiming group.
In the Mayall Memorial Trophy event, run as the first race of the day, MAJOR MAYER used his superior class to defeat a plucky CHADMAN and his stable companion PASSA PASSA.
The winner disputed the early lead with outsider SEAL OF MOULIN and CHADMAN before going clear 700m out. Mitchell sat motionless as the five-year-old gelding came into the final 400m full of running to win by two lengths. I AM PAID FOR, a narrow loser on Wednesday, took full advantage of a strong early pace set by SPACESAVER to emerge an easy eight-length winner in the 'Judge' Hardie Memorial. SPACESAVER, ridden by Shane Ellis, led under pressure from 6/5 favourite STRONG DELIVERY into the final straight. The latter grabbed the lead 300m out but was immediately gobbled up by the fast-finishing I AM PAID FOR in the middle of the track.
KEELER at 14/1 and UNBREAKABLE HEART at 6-1 ensured that the popular Pick-9 was not caught for a 14th straight race day. The very fit KEELER won the fourth race over 1000m where TIME OF MY LIFE, ridden by champion jockey Omar Walker and going off at 2/5, was widely used as a banker.
It could have been worse. GEORGETTE TASHA, with Mitchell up, crossed the line first in the last race at 21-1, but was disqualified and placed out of the frame for interfering with FIRELINK. The race was awarded to second past the post, 2-1 favourite ROYAL SOLUTION, ridden by Walker, who ended the day with three winners to take his tally for the season to 79.
Fourteen punters with eight of nine winners collected $86,944, while those with seven of nine got 1,838.50. The carryover going into Saturday's St. Leger Day is a mammoth $23,333,998.80.
