‘Country’ Francis strikes with Reggae 6 outsiders

JOURNEYMAN jockey Paul Francis, who fell one winner short of dethroning injured Omar Walker for the 2009 jockeys' title, drove two telling daggers into Saturday's Reggae 6, winning aboard 10-1 shot GENERATIONAL in the fourth and AWESOME LINE at 8-1 in the sixth.

A tough card if there was ever one - starting with market-springer LORD OF AJAHLON winning the opening event at 2-1, followed by Omar Simpson making a long-awaited return to the winners' enclosure astride LAST DANCE at 6-1 - Saturday's Reggae 6 returned $815,045 to winning tickets.

Punters were left sputtering at the opener after 4-5 favourite DONALMIGHTY failed to raise a hair, down in class on a $400,000 claim tag, after finishing second to STORM A COME among $650,000 claimers a month prior.

LORD OF AJAHLON closed fast with title-chasing Raddesh Roman to deny rail-running STICKYDON, beating the 35-1 outsider by a nose, a result which, had it gone the other way, would have probably knocked 90 per cent of Reggae 6 tickets out if the game.

LAST DANCE making all with Simpson took out its fair share of bettors before SALUD settled the ship somewhat with Roman notching his second winner of the afternoon.

However, GENERATIONAL upstaging 4-5 favourite and course-specialist VOLATILITY at five furlongs straight, turning around dismal form off a change of barn, flipping the Reggae 6 on its head, leaving not too many tickets to weather the last two races.

FUNCAANDUN, though winning at even-money, knocked off many fans of ATOMICA, who thought the 2022 Jamaica Derby winner could have survived another tag-team of Jason DaCosta runners in the fifth.

Surviving tickets were struck down, leaving a handful, after Francis made all with AWESOME LINE, leaving her three-year-old peers flat-footed at four furlongs straight, zipping home from post-position 15 with the track bias in her favour at odds of 8-1.

The Reggae 6 starts with a single-winning ticket bonus of $5.26 million up for grabs this Saturday.