BLAST Them Away returned to his winning ways by capturing the $715,000 Ash Wednesday Trophy highlighter at Caymanas Park on Wednesday.

Trained by Wayne DaCosta, for owner Robert K Thomas, Blast Them Away had to be called upon by champion jockey Dane Nelson for an extra effort metres from the line to hold off his stable companion, Sir Von, by one-half length to get the job done and launched his four-year-old career off to a winning start.

Installed the 1-4 favourite, Blast Them Away ran 1,300 metres in a time of 1:19.2 minutes among Overnight Allowance, three-year-olds and upward horses.

Returning to the track for the first time since being beaten in May and June of last year by Horse-Of-The-Year Saint Cecelia, after winning his seven previous races, Blast Them Away looked all over an easy winner, turning for home in a modest field of runners, except for Sir Von.

Sir Von, a 5-2 chance ridden by last year’s champion jockey Dick Cardenas, almost ruined the party, as entering the contest 4.0kg lighter and just as effective going the distance, sent out a strong challenge to Blast Them Away entering the straight.

Sir Von at one stage pointed, but the current champion jockey would have none of that and began to roll over the fleet-footed Blast Them Away, who in turn responded with a masterful turn-of-foot along the running rails to carve out a narrow but emphatic win. It was a win that left DaCosta a pleased trainer.

“This was a weak field of Overnight Allowance runners, and it was obvious that my two horses stood out and the race was between them. My concern was whether or not Blast Them Away, who had not raced for eight months, was race fit and he showed today (Wednesday) that he still has grit.

“I was also pleased by the performances of the horses. It is not that I did not expect them to perform well, it is just that their performances will be an encouragement to any trainer,” DaCosta added.

As was expected, in the cheap field, DaCosta’s other entry Jet Setter, ridden by claiming apprentice Holando Butler at odds of 5-1, gave him a 1-2-3 finish in the event with the 8-1 bet Classic Princess, ridden by Paul Francis, completing the frame in the seven-horse field.

Blast Them Away is by Proud Accolade out of Evita Villa (Forrest Wildcat) bred by Woodsfield Farm in the USA and was winning for the eighth time with two second-placed finishes from 10 career starts. He earned $390,400 as the winner’s share for a bankroll of $4,075,050 lifetime.

Meanwhile, Omar Walker, who leads the jockeys’ standings, had another fabulous day in the saddle with three winners, but he had share riding honours with Dane Nelson, who also rode a triple.

Walker increased his tally to 17, while Nelson, who may sit out a 10-day suspension beginning next Saturday, moved to 14.