FORMER six-time champion jockey Omar Damian Walker, known to his fans as ‘Champo’, was the toast of the fraternity as he was featured on the nine-race programme, an appropriately titled Trophy staged to honour his extraordinary record-breaking exploits.

Walker’s main patron was the late 18-time champion Wayne DaCosta, but the modest reinsman piloted Classic winners for Ian Parsard, Richard Azan and Lorne Kirlew. Walker is also in the Caymanas 1000 plus winners’ club, alongside greats Winston Griffiths, Emelio Rodriquez, Charles Hussey, Shane Ellis and Dane Nelson.

Run as race seven, the Omar Walker Trophy had a predictable outcome . The 1-5 bet Legacy Isle (USA) — two-time winner up North, a neck second in the 2024 Mouttet Mile Invitational, and conditioned by Rohan Crichton — controlled the pace of the five-furlong round event to score by nearly five lengths easing down. The assistance of rider Tevin Foster was unnecessary throughout.

Reyan Lewis, the 2023 champion jockey, was aboard the first of two winners declared by former three-time champion Anthony Nunes.

Three-year-old maiden filly Perfect Affair struck the front entering the last of the six furlongs of race two, to score by nearly three lengths.

Nunes’ second came in race two as 2011 champion Dick Cardenas had Battle Angel (6-1) one length in front at the end of the testing eight-furlong trip.

Race three for maiden four-year-olds and upwards, run over five furlongs straight, went to 5-1 bet Bomb Night, ridden by claimer Rickie Shakes for trainer Captain Marlon Brown who has now assumed the role of presidentof the United Racehorse Trainers’ Association of Jamaica (URTAJ). Rightfully, all must be optimistic and confident that Brown, a trained leader, will be an effective representative and negotiator as there are several issues to be resolved.

Run over the same course as race three, in the fourth another claimer, Emelio McLean, demonstrated his competence aboard four-length winner Ridge Liner (9-2), saddled by Winston Morris. The fifth event went to KP Choice (5-2), declared by Gregg Fennell, with very experienced claimer Shavon Townsend executing the riding honours to win the five-and-half-furlong gallop by just under three lengths.

In race six, 8-5 favourite Cappuccino fell in the closing stages, resulting in an injury to Dane Dawkins. The 2022 champion was unable to ride for the remainder of day and was not cleared to ride in seven races 24 hours later. The event, run over the five-furlong round trip, was won by Heiroffire (9-2), ridden by Phillip Parchment for trainer Steven Todd and long-standing and knowledgeable owner Garth Samuels.

Passing the post first at 13-1 only to be disqualified over a similar trip in February, Nephew (USA) was back over the six-and-half-furlong course of today’s eighth. Claimer Demar Williams, perhaps the most advanced of the 2024 Jamaica Racing Commission’s Jockeys’ School graduates, brought the Owen Sharpe-conditioned three-year-old colt with a well-timed run on the far rails to score by just over one length at odds of 7-2.

Owned by trainer Patrick Taylor and ridden by Javaniel Patterson, 5-1 chance Happy Force was three parts of a length better than his nearest rival at the same price as Louis Richards’ Galopin De Veloz (Oneil Scott) over the seven furlongs of the ninth and closing event.

The Training Feat Award is presented to Capt Brown for the winning run of Bomb Night, who was a combined 47 lengths behind in her last three races after finishing fourth by three lengths in the first of her five career starts. The Best winning Gallop was executed gamely by Battle Angel, with 2011 champion Cardenas taking the Jockeyship Award for the deployment of his skills and experience.