Classy Prospect lands Prime Minister’s Stakes
THE Wayne DaCosta-trained Classy Prospect proved his class among Graded Stakes company with a sterling front-running display to win the 51st running of the $1,320,000 Prime Minister’s Stakes on the Independence Day programme at Caymanas Park yesterday.
Neglected in the betting as a 5-1 betting option, the victory was well earned by the son of Saint Appeal, whose matured run showed his true grit from in deep stretch to hold off the lighter Raging Prospect (50.0kg), the joint 7-5 favourite Commanding Chief (52.0kg), and the 3-1 chance Reasonable Press, by a neck to take the event with an electrifying run. Typewriter, the morning line favourite, was fifth.
Ridden by Dane Nelson, who brought the house down earlier with hair-raising performance aboard Fantabulous in the seventh race, hustled up Classy Prospect to take a slim lead from Raging Prospect, ridden by Dick Cardenas, and Commanding Chief under the claiming apprentice Ruja Lahoe at the off. He then maintained a steady gallop until leaving the 800-metre marker when jockey Shane Ellis produced Typewriter for his challenge on the outside. Both seemed to be locked in a short tussle before the final bend for home appeared at which point Classy Prospect began to accelerate to lead them into the lane.
No sooner than Classy Prospect dismissed the challenge of Typewriter on the turn, Cardenas produced Raging Prospect on the inside, while Lahoe threw down his challenge aboard Commanding Chief on the outside. The battle for supremacy then developed in earnest, but Nelson was tactical and kept Classy Prospect well balanced, relented and found extra to get home for consecutive wins and the fourth for the season, the third under Nelson. Dictating splits of 25.1, 50.3, 1:14.1 and 1:38.4 for 1,600 metres, Classy Prospect ran 2,000 metres in a career best of 2:07.0.
DaCosta, who has just completed the double in the three-year-old Classic with Perfect Neighbour, said the win was commendable and the performance was quite heady but one not altogether unexpected.
“He had just won his race before and came into the race with hopes very high. He had run quite good going two turns already and this was basically the same field he raced against, so we knew we had a good chance.
“One thing we will not compromise and run him short, as he shows that willingness to go long and we’ll stick to the long races. The thing is that as he gets older he seems to stay better. Let us not forget that his dam Good Prospect won the Jamaica Derby, the St Leger and the Governor’s Cup… his mother stays forever, so there is little reason that he shouldn’t stay.”