- FILE
Miracle Man winning last year's Red Stripe Superstakes over 2000 metres, at Caymanas Park.
Orville Clarke, Freelance Writer
REIGNING 'HORSE of the Year' MIRACLE MAN, unbeaten in three starts this season, goes for his fifth straight win at Caymanas Park today in the $850,000 graded stakes feature for the Chairman's Trophy over 1500 metres.
Despite a small field of five, the race has attracted the three best middle distance horses in the country - MIRACLE MAN with champion jockey Brian Harding aboard and the stable-companions CLOCK WORK and FORMALLY GOLD, with leading jockey Charles Hussey and Dane Nelson respectively, riding for champion trainer Wayne DaCosta.
DaCosta holds a pretty strong hand with the classy American colt CLOCK WORK and the consistent imported mare FORMALLY GOLD who got up in the nick of time to catch top sprinter QUIET STRENGTH over 1100 metres in the valuable Lotto Sprint, on May 13.
FORMALLY GOLD came back with a big effort in defeat on June 2, when failing by half a length to catch QUIET STRENGTH over 1300 metres in the million-dollar Digicel Irish Jamaican Stakes over 1300 metres and is not to be taken lightly, today.
CLOCK WORK will be having his first outing since flopping behind MIRACLE MAN in the Legal Light Trophy over 1400 metres on February 18, weakening in the straight to finish 11 lengths sixth after chasing MIRACLE MAN at close range for a long way.
CLOCK WORK will report well refreshed from a four-month absence and could return with a bang over what is an ideal trip for him.
Despite all that, MIRACLE MAN has come on to such an extent this season that this massive four-year-old colt by Law Of The Sea out of Hya will not be easily denied.
Trained by the legendary Hall of Famer Allan 'Billy' Williams, MIRACLE MAN, who won the Derby and Superstakes in 2005, beat both FORMALLY GOLD and CLOCK WORK in the Eros Trophy back in February and having been taken to task at exercise in preparation for this race, galloping five furlongs in 59.2 (looked well) on Tuesday morning, he ought to be followed in present frame of mind.
MIRACLE MAN has the necessary pace and stretch kick to upstage both CLOCK WORK and FORMALLY GOLD, extending his win record to 10 from 15 career starts and well over $10 million in stakes earnings. I am expecting him to wear out CLOCK WORK on the lead and hold the fast-finishing FORMALLY GOLD at bay in the closing stages.
Other firm fancies on the card are SUN TANNED TOES in the 1st race, HAPHAZARD in the 4th, MR. VIGOROUS in the 6th, FUTZ to rebound in the 7th and LEGENDARY GLITZ to catch FRANKIE MOREFIRE, PRINCESS JACQUELINE and RESHMA in the Henry Harrisison Sr. Memorial Cup over 1300 metres.
