The 2024 jockey championship title race reached a fever pitch on Saturday as Raddesh Roman surged into a tie with Tevin Foster atop the standings after an electrifying three-win performance.

The highlight of Roman’s day came in the $1.25-million Caymanas Park Announcers Trophy feature race. Aboard Paul Hylton’s talented Oasis Jak, Roman dominated the Overnight Allowance contest, crossing the finish line three-and-a-quarter lengths ahead of the pack.

The four-year-old American-bred filly’s impressive time of 1:20.1 left Grecian Light, ridden by Foster, and Money Market, piloted by Dane Dawkins, in her wake.

Roman’s other winners were Jack Daniel in the fifth race, trained by Gary Crawford, and Unruly Don in the eighth, trained and owned by Oral Hayden.

With these victories, Roman matched Foster’s season tally of 112 wins, setting the stage for a nail-biting championship battle.

Foster kept pace with two wins on the card: Empress Nakelia in the opening event, trained by Robert Ffrench, and The Soul Warrior in the fourth, trained by Phillip Lee. Foster had another winner in She’s That Girl in the seventh race but the Steven Todd trainee was disqualified from first place.

As the championship race intensifies, fans are in for a thrilling ride, with Roman and Foster vying for the top spot.

Meanwhile, in a worrying incident, Panamanian jockey Dick Cardenas was involved in a fall during the third race. Cardenas was unseated from his mount, Power of Faith, and was subsequently stood down for the remainder of the races.

Fortunately, the former champion jockey was reported to be conscious immediately after the incident. However, as a precautionary measure, he was transported to the hospital for further observation.

Racing continues on Saturday.