Running Loose streaks home in Commock Trophy

Orville Clarke, Gleaner Writer

ANNIE OAKLEY and RUNNING LOOSE won their respective co-feature races in contrasting fashion at Caymanas Park yesterday.

The 4-5 joint favourite ANNIE OAKLEY, ridden by Panamanian jockey Dick Cardenas (his 100th winner in Jamaica) for 14-time champion trainer Philip Feanny and his son Chad, turned the tables on recent conqueror FATTY BUM BUM, the 4-5 marginal favourite, in winning the $1 million Terremoto Trophy race over the round five course by a neck, this for maiden two-year-olds.

Wayne DaCosta’s FATTIE BUM BUM under champion jockey Omar Walker broke winging from the number one post position, but was soon joined by ANNIE OAKLEY on the outside in a field of six.

Saving ground on the inside, FATTY BUM BUM turned for home a narrow leader and although appearing to hold the challenge of ANNIE OAKLEY a furlong out, wilted in the last 100 metres as ANNIE OAKLEY, responding to a bustling ride from Cardenas, got up in the nick of time.

A bay filly by Royal Minister out of Mississippi Train, ANNIE OAKLEY, who was administered Lasix for the first time, chalked up her second win from four starts.

The other silverware on the card, the Aston Commock Trophy run in memory of the late ‘Hall of Fame’ trainer, provided the stretch-running filly RUNNING LOOSE (4-1) with her second consecutive win.

Outpaced

One of two winners for part-owner and trainer Morris Powell, RUNNING LOOSE, with 2.0kg claiming apprentice Richard Mairs aboard, found herself outpaced on the damp surface, as LORD ADMIRAL and the 1-2 favourite BORA BORA, who was not the best away, alternated in the lead ahead of PATARA.

She turned for home several lengths off the pace in sixth position and stormed through on the rails from early in the last furlong to win by 4 1/2 lengths from 7-1 chance BULLET LINE (closing), with BORA BORA, who was headed a furlong out, fading into third in the 13-horse field.

A four-year-old filly by Footloose II out of Tawnee Princess, RUNNING LOOSE had previously won the Valbert Marlowe Memorial Cup over 1800 metres on June 26 when toting a mere 45.5kg. She was hiked 6.5kg in the scales for this race, but it made no difference.

Powell, who has been churning out the winners in recent months, saddled a second winner in 2-1 chance CHRISTMAS TREAT, the 5-y-o mare getting up in the nick of time under Paul Francis to catch BUCK THE MINISTER (11-1) in the second race over 1300 metres for $180,000 claimers.

Five-time champion jockey Trevor Simpson (Rifleman, Dusty Milly) rode two winners, while in-form female apprentice, Georgina Sergeon notched her 15th career win aboard 2-1 chance SKITTLE QUEEN for champion trainer Wayne DaCosta in the closing overnight allowance race to equal the record held by Jamaica’s first female rider, Azel Cowie, who started riding as an apprentice at the backend of 1991.