After winning his first race on home turf with five-year-old chestnut horse
King Air on Saturday, January 27, 2024, American-based conditioner Howard Bogues intimated that he might return to Jamaica to train horses full-time.

King Air was victorious in the $720,000 Restricted Allowance V contest for five-year-olds and upward (non-winners of two) and imported five-year-olds and upward (maidens) over six furlongs (1,200m).

“I have been training in the States at Tamba Downs mostly. I can tell you, winning my first race here at Caymanas Park is a better feeling than winning in America because it was here that it all started for me. My father [Jackie Bogues] was an owner and trainer, so you can say that I was born into racing. I used to go to Ms. Eileen Cliggott’s barn in the evenings, and so the love for the sport grew,” Bogues told the
Jamaica Observer.

“I am making a transition — not right this moment, but soon. I have an owner who is coming onboard, so I will have more horses under my care. This win by
King Air was just to get things going.

“This is one of the horses, and we are going to claim a few more, so hopefully we will have at least five horses by the end of the year and see where it takes us. But I intended to come back to train here. I have seen major improvements in racing in Jamaica. I am getting old now, so where better to finish out the years than at Caymanas Park?” he further said.

Owned by The Businessman and ridden by Shavon Townsend, King Air ( Midnight Hawk—Mameta) won the race by a length ahead of Special Gift (Matthew Bennett) and Dancing With A Cat (Tevin Foster) in a time of 1:17.3.

“We will see how King Air comes out of the race before we can decide where he goes from here. He has made tremendous improvements, and that is why I knew that he was going to run big today.

“Everybody who saw the horse here told me that this horse was a different horse, and I told them we just changed up his programme a little bit and put the right rider on him, and he rode an excellent race. Everybody had recommended the jockey, and we just went with him, and he brought it home, so we are happy.

“I am targeting the big races. Like I said, I have an owner who is going to invest some money, and so hopefully we will have some quality horses,” Bogues said.