World Surprise, who bolted before the start of what was supposed to be his debut on December 17 and was declared a late non-starter, returned and comfortably defeated competitors on Saturday, December 23, 2023.

With the favourite on Saturday, Sheriff in Town standing up in the starting gates and refusing to race, World Surprise seized the opportunity and romped home easily winning by 9 ¾ lengths in the maiden special weight contest for native-bred two-year-olds at five furlongs straight.

Trained by Anthony Nunes and ridden by Tevin Foster, World Surprise won in a time of 1:00.2 (23.2 x 46.0).

“He [World Surprise] ran well. He ran a minute and two-fifths of a second, which is pretty good for a two-year-old first time out,” Nunes told the Jamaica Observer‘s The Supreme Racing Guide.

“Unfortunately the favourite stood up in the gates so it would have been nice to have something to compare him to but he can only beat who he ran against, so I am happy with the performance. He is automatically in non-winners of two and so we will find a race for him in January or February of next year,” Nunes added.

World Surprise broke off well at the start of the race and quickly assumed pole position ahead of the field.

He held the lead ahead of First Offence (Dane Dawkins) and Go West Young Man (Matthew Bennett) for the first half of the race, but sprinted clear inside the final furlong for an easy win.

First Offence finished second ahead of Buzz Marie (Samantha Fletcher) in third place.