The final day of the Barbados Turf Club’s second racing season, the Barbados Breeders’ Association’s Breeders Sales Race Day, should see another scintillating performance by Shared Adventure at the Garrison Savannah today.
The H and M-owned colt will compete against eight others on the nine-race card, and though the race is not the afternoon’s feature, it is sure to garner much attention as Shared Adventure’s challengers seek to stop this improving colt from recording yet another win. This time the challenge will be in the BTC Sprints Handicap for three-year-old horses rated 97-120 and also open to horses rated 96 and below over 1 100 metres.
Shared Adventure will shoulder 128 pounds, which should not hamper his chances.
Show Me The Money carries the top weight of 133 pounds. Apart from his poor run of form, he has not sprinted for a very long time.
Stablemate Purr Class takes 129 pounds, while Erados and Janaki, both winners in their last starts, take 121 and 110 pounds, respectively, and must be in with a shout.
Although not a sprint, the afternoon’s pattern event has the makings of a speedfest. The Sales Graduates’ Champion Stakes (weight for age) for Barbados bred three and four-year-olds over 1 570 metres will see the return of this year’s Derby winner Bandera Belle tackling older horses for the first time.
She is nicely handicapped at 117 pounds but will have to cause another upset if she is to win.
Top weight in this race goes to the Blue Diamond Stable duo of Must Be The Money and Istanbul, both carrying 128 pounds. The latter will take lots of beating. Lady Quill, taking 123 pounds, should not be left out.
The programme will get off to a hot start when 12 two-year-olds face the starter in the Sale Graduates’ Futurity Stakes (Condition race) over 1 100 metres. The unbeaten Mark Armstrong-owned filly Vanity Affair will meet the crème de la crème of these juveniles. While she has got the job done, she has never appeared invincible.
The Price Is Right was a very impressive winner of her second start and with further improvement looks a serious threat.
Cabin Boy handed Blue Diamond Stable their first two-year-old success when he won a driving finish against his stablemate High Tide. Seems he will appreciate any additional ground but to repeat that win he will have to move up his game a few more notches.
Nekitta is the only other winner in the field.?She has shown a tendency to be running on late, hence the two second-place finishes to go along with the win. One can expect the Lewin Godding-owned filly to be around when it matters most – at the finish.
Eyes should be kept on the four first-time starters – Cavanak, Double Noble, Furious and North Western.
Drawing wide on the outside, Sweet Bottom Sarah has performed creditably in her two efforts.
She is figuring to give another good account of herself.
Post time is 1 p.m.
