DaCosta’s Sir Alton to rebound

February 14, 2020
LOOSE BALL (Jerome Innis) wins last Saturday’s ninth race at Caymanas Park. The three-year-old gelding is owned by Elizabeth DaCosta and trained by her husband, Wayne.
LOOSE BALL (Jerome Innis) wins last Saturday’s ninth race at Caymanas Park. The three-year-old gelding is owned by Elizabeth DaCosta and trained by her husband, Wayne.

WAYNE DaCosta's importee, SIR ALTON, who flopped as a 1-5 favourite when bidding for a second win from as many starts on January 11, has worked like a supersonic jet for his return on Sunday, taking on fellow United States-bred, CRAFTY AND READY, who he had beaten by a half-length when both debuted at five furlongs straight on December 6.

CRAFTY AND READY won his follow-up race in impressive fashion, eight days later, putting away SIR ALTON's stablemate, UNCLE POLLY, another US-bred, at six furlongs, clocking a flashy 1:11.4 with the tongue tie fitted by trainer Adin Williams, prompting railbirds to declare him as being ready for the rematch.

Never one to have his charges leave anything on the exercise track, DaCosta, stung by SIR ALTON's defeat to local-bred SOUL CURE, has put pedal to metal, revving SIR ALTON in gallops not seen outside the likes of fellow stablemates SHE'S A MANEATER and STRANGER DANGER, the country's top grade-one horses.

Set the stage

Back-to-back 1:06.0 clockings for five and a half furlongs, followed by a scary 1:18.4 for six and a half, the last six in 1:12.4, have set the stage for a thriller against CRAFTY AND READY, who has worked well but nothing close to his rival's eye-popping gallops.

DaCosta has removed the blinkers with which he had fitted SIR ALTON for the January 11 sprint, which didn't help him any because he was slowly into stride and seemed not to enjoy the equipment after rushing down to dispute the lead.

Williams has also made an equipment change, ditching the visor, which CRAFTY AND READY had worn in his two outings, prepping his colt to tackle the longer distance of seven and a half furlongs without headgear.

The event could be decided by which of the two foreigners stays better because despite the obvious class of Ian Parsard's local-bred, MAHOGANY, who is seeking a hat-trick of wins as he preps for the three-year-old classics, the importers look set to make him an onlooker.

However, Parsard will make his mark on the Sunday card with what should be a two-timer, SUPERLUMINAL racing the clock in the Alexander Hamilton Trophy at a mile and FATHER PATRICK returning off an eight-month lay-up at five furlongs round, his main threat being Anthony Nunes' back-to-form BALTUSROL.

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