UPDATE: Tortola’s Broken Home equals record on St. Croix! [Photoslide Included]
His win was the only one for Tortola in the 12 races that ran off. East End Tap secured the third spot in the feature race.
What made the win sweeter for Broken Home according to trainer Rodney Simmonds, is that the horse made his debut on St. Croix soil in the Mongoose Sprint Classic. The winning purse was $4,000.
Albeit the record was not broken, a beaming Simmonds told Virgin Islands News Online, “It was a big win for Tortola and the guys who helped me with the horse. It’s a good feeling overall.”
He admitted that he was overconfident of his horse breaking the record, and added, “He was supposed to break the track record but the jockey I guess the rider slow him down a little bit. Once he is doing good, we are going over to St. Thomas.”
Coming in second in race 8 to Broken Home was Aircraft Intercept from St. Thomas and Groomsman out of St. Croix placed third. Johann Slew (debut) and Bruno’s Burst came in fourth and fifth respectively. Really Uptown, another Tortola horse, was scratched from the race.
Bud White wins big!
The over 3,000 horseracing fans were on their feet for the much talked about and hyped feature race, with the late addition of Bud White – a horse that travelled from St. Thomas.
And race 11 was not without controversy but despite the objections of St. Croix and Tortola horseowners that he [Bud White] had no points according to the rules – he was let into the race.
However, the powerful black stallion proved his worth in the 1 1/16 mile Flamboyant Stakes. He led from the beginning of the race and only gained momentum. On the last stretch to the finish line, St. Croix’s Slevin had given fans a glimmer of hope in overtaking Bud White, but in the end the ‘speed mister’ pulled away to a new record 1:41:4.
This news agency spoke with Hugo Hodge moments after the race who bluntly stated, “The controversy was why they did not want him in the race...he is a class horse and we were very confident coming in and very confident going out. There is no doubt we will back and make sure everything sound. Once everything sound, you will see him in St. Thomas in March for the last leg.”
Native Rhythm had set the record of 1:42:1 for the same race on April 1, 1991.
Slevin, the Triple Crown first leg winner, raced in second and East End Tap of Tortola came in a close third. Rounding up the field was Diablo’s Fire; Berberis, Political Reporter and Good Prospecting (Tortola) in fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh respectively.
The winning purse was worth $11,750.
Bud White reportedly won three races in New York before coming to St. Thomas and was expected to be a real threat in the second leg on Sunday despite placing 7th in his last race up North.
Meanwhile, owner of Slevin, James Bates, was not impressed with the inclusion of Bud White and believed that the horse had no place in the Triple Crown since it did not race before in the Virgin Islands and therefore hadn’t any points.
According to Bates, it was a slap in the face to the many hardworking horsemen, who work hard, day in day out, to ensure their horses accumulated points throughout the year and also to those horsemen who made the trip to Tortola for the first leg of the Triple Crown.
Bates said he hoped that next year there would be more “concrete rules” that would avoid controversy.
The other horses that represented Tortola were Broken Home, Square One and Spirit on Fire. Notable absence was the L&B Stable, who decided not to send any of its horses.
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According to Violet ‘Letty’ Hodge, it was not profitable to send her horses due to the small purse prizes. “It’s like you spending a dollar for a quart.” She noted though that her horses would feature in the 3rd and final leg in St. Thomas.
Hodge is also not in agreement with the entry of Bud White into the Triple Crown since she also feels the horse was not qualified to participate.
According to the guidelines for the 2nd leg of the Triple Crown, the top three finishers in the 1st leg is guaranteed a spot in the 2nd leg; the remaining slots will be determined based on preferences by the host track; and if a horse declines entry, next in line will be allowed the slot, and determined by the host track.
Winners of the other races included Cruzan Emerald; Excessively Classy; Game Winner; Small Fortune; Prodefrere; Full House Project; Green Sand; Prince Crystal and Big D.
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