With the hot ante-post favourite ALSAFRA having to be scratched from yesterday's Fontainbleu Trophy because of a life-threatening ailment, LITTLE WASP seized the opportunity to romp the open allowance feature over 1500 metres at Caymans Park.
The 2008 Horse of the Year and Triple Crown winner, ALSAFRA, was one of six horses declared for the race, but she was affected by gripe complications in her stall overnight and was cause for great concern by her connections who feared the worse.
"During the night she came down with a stomach ache and there was no vet on duty to examine her in the wee hours of the night. It was left to myself and the groom to treat her," the filly's trainer, Fitznahum Williams, told The Gleaner yesterday at the track.
Cool her down with ice
"She lay on the ground curled up in pain, so we had to give her medication and cool her down with ice. At one time I thought we would lose her ... I said to myself 'this is not my horse, this is not my horse'.
"She fought the illness, however, and the situation improved in the morning when a vet came to look at her," said Williams.
The trainer recalled that he lost a "nice young horse" some months ago with a similar ailment and to lose an outstanding horse like ALSAFRA would be devastating not only to him, but to the filly's groom and co-owners Norman Gordon and Sherman Clachar.
Williams said Clachar stayed with ALSAFRA right through her ordeal and in the end her condition improved.
Meanwhile, the Wayne DaCosta-trained American three-year-old filly, LITTLE WASP, running at odds of 6-5 under champion jockey Omar Walker, chased the highly fancied AGUILA (6-5) at close range for most of the way in the five-strong field.
LITTLE WASP came through on the inside to assume the lead from AGUILA, passing the 600-metre pole, and found extra when the 6-5 favourite SLOGAN came calling approaching the distance, to beat him by three lengths.
Third consecutive win
LITTLE WASP is co-owned by DaCosta, Winston Kong, Raymond 'Mitta' Rousseau and Bernard Dulal-Whiteway. This was her third consecutive win and her sixth from seven career starts.
Later in the afternoon, highly fancied RIVER STYX made all convincingly to win the Portmore Community Trophy secondary feature over 1100 metres for native bred four-year-olds and up. The four-year-old filly by Royal Minister-Eternal Stream was ridden by Chris Douglas for owner/trainer Patrick Lynch.
Omar Walker (Little Wasp, Twenty Nine) and Clive Lynch (China Town, Pleasure Flight) shared the riding honours with two winners each, while the Stanley Findlay-trained GO MY ROBIN (16-1) thrashed the 1-9 favourite FUGITIVE in winning the sixth race over 1820 metres by all of 15 lengths, with apprentice Lenroy Collins aboard.