Barbados has a new champion jockey.
He is 21-year-old Reshawn Latchman.
Latchman, who also topped the third racing season’s table with nine wins from 33 starts that earned $93 403, recovered from a mid-year slump to capture the award.
Having started the Barbados Turf Club’s final day one win behind leader Antonio Whitehall, he drew level by Race 2 – Division “A” of the Diamonds International Safi Kalima Handicap – scoring with Johnny Sad Boy.
Whitehall regained the lead by winning Race 5 – DI/Crown Of Light Stakes And Trophy over 1 570 metres – with Nekitta.
Latchman’s reply was swift and it proved decisive as he won Race 7 – the Diamonds International/Day 2 Night Handicap – on Iamsogroovy.
Both jockeys went into the last race tied on 30 wins, but Latchman had the last laugh after they finished out of the money.
Race 1, which saw Rahy Stormello with Latchman finishing second, was the race used to determine the championship.
Latchman had 30 wins from173 rides and landed earnings of $458 042 for the horse owners.
He earned a win per cent of 17 and ended in the top three finishers of 43 per cent.
Whitehall, employed by Sir Charles Williams, had to settle for the second position after leading the jockeys for nearly the entire year.
He took the first season’s honours with 16 wins and, despite maintaining the lead, he lost momentum, winning eight and six races respectively in seasons two and three.
Whitehall won 30 races from 190 starts which earned the horse owners $507 501. He had a win per cent of 16 and ended in the top three finishers 40 per cent.
The same method used to determine the winner also had to be applied to separate jockeys placing third and fourth. That’s because both Anderson Trotman and Kenny John climaxed their season on 25 wins.
Trotman’s second placed returns of 23 were superior to John’s nine.
Contracted to Hopefield Stable, his winners earned the owners $465 536 from 184 rides, giving him a win per cent of 13.5 and putting him in the top three finishers at 37.5 per cent. He formed good relationships with Dancin David, Aristodemus and Fernandina.
John, after taking honours in season two with 14 wins, was unable to sustain the level of intensity required to take the overall championship. He recorded a win per cent of 17 and was in the top three finishers of 32.
From 137 starts this year, he landed earnings of $290 685, including $81 765 for his third season’s efforts.
He excelled with trainers Andrew Nunes and Jonathon Simpson on horses like Lady Quill, Little Man Arran and The Price Is Right.
Whitehall ($115 603) and fellow jockeys – Trotman and John – all finished tied on six wins.
Trotman ($108 793) took the second position in the third season championship by having the most seconds – five – compared to Whitehall and John’s four and two, respectively.
