Rajiv Maragh collects season-opening double

Florida (CMC):

Rajiv Maragh opened the new season at Gulfstream Park on Wednesday with a double.

The Jamaican reinsman was one of two jockeys that won two races, as South Florida's premier racetrack opened its doors.

Maragh took the 3-1 chance Midnight Thunder to victory by a nose in the US $15,000 second race going 1,200 metres.

Midnight Thunder, a seven-year-old bay gelding, stalked the pace around the turn, eased outside second-placed Fly South for the stretch run, before Maragh rallied under pressure to be just up at the wire for a time of one minute, 10.85 seconds.

Maragh then upset the field in the US$51,500 seventh race going 1,600m aboard the 41-1 outsider War Prospector by two lengths.

War Prospector, a two-year-old bay filly, set the pace along the rail, drew clear in the middle of the stretch, and then was fully extended to hold sway to clock 1 minute, 37.04 seconds.

Meanwhile in Charles Town, West Virginia, Oswald Pereira and Rodney Soodeen collected their first wins of the new season in Hollywood Casino at Charles Town racing on Wednesday.

The two Trinidad & Tobago jockeys collected solid victories on the second day of the winter season, at the racetrack located just outside of the eastern city limits of this town.

Six-length victory

Pereira logged a six-length victory astride Flaming Rum Punch in the US $11,300 second race over 900 metres on the dirt.

Flaming Rum Punch, a four-year-old grey mare, was well reserved to set a clear pace off the rail, and widened with little encouragement from Pereira through the lane, to clock 53.67 seconds.

Soodeen landed the US $11,000 third race aboard the 28-1 outsider Pretty Zealous by two lengths.

Pretty Zealous, a three-year-old bay filly, covered 900m in 54.97 seconds, after setting the pace three-wide, held clear around the turn, and prevailed while kept to urging by Soodeen.