THE longshot winner of the 3rd leg of the Philippine Racing Commission Triple Crown series held last July cemented her status as the filly of the season by claiming top honors in this year’s Don Juan de Manila Derby.
The 2,000-meter race held Oct. 4 at Metroturf Racecourse saw the Cat Brulay x Near Miss filly guided by Kelvin Abobo beat to the finish eventual second placer Court of Honor, likewise a talented filly who scored an upset victory in the 2nd leg of this year’s Triple Crown.
The race, sponsored by KDJM and Metroturf, was allotted P1.5 million in total prize money for first to fifth. The P900,000 top prize went to Miss Brulay’s owner Running Rich Racing. The rest of the placers were, in order: Dikoridik Koridak, Breaking Bad, and Princess Ella.
In the other KDJM major races, Underwood won the Juvenile Colts and Port Angeles the Juvenile Fillies, both 1,400-meter races backed by Philracom; the 1,800-meter Golden Girls race sponsored by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office was won by Silver Sword.
Congratulations to KDJM President Jun Almeda and the group’s officers and members on staging yet another successful racing event!
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The Oct. 18 races at Santa Ana Park were cancelled due to the jockeys refusing to ride in the face of strong winds whipped up by Typhoon Lando (Koppu). The PCSO Racing Committee will announce soon whether or not the PCSO Anniversary Race, which had been scheduled for that day, will be reset.
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The declared entries in the Oct. 31 PCSO Maiden race at San Lazaro Leisure Park are lawyer Narciso Morales’s filly Guantanamera, to be guided by jockey Kelvin Abobo; Albert Dichaves’s filly Mahayana Budur with Jesse B. Guce; Joseph Dyhengco’s filly Yes Kitty with Patricio Dilema; Nathaniel Velasco’s filly Ellie’s Charm with Val Dilema; Felizardo Sevilla Jr.’s colt Purging Line with Mark Alvarez; Cool Summer Farm’s filly Striking Colors with Jordan Cordova; Stony Road Horse Farm’s colt Mt. Rainier with John Alvin Guce; and Mayor Sandy Javier’s filly Yong Yong with Jonathan Hernandez.
This being a a set-weight handicap race, fillies will carry 52 kgs. and colts 54 kgs.
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Philracom will be launching the Philippine Horseracing Hall of Fame in December to recognize and honor those who have made significant achievements in the sport.
The program also seeks to enhance the image of racing and generate national interest in a sport that has existed in an organized form in the country since 1867.
Nominations may be made by anyone from the public, including industry members, the media, and racing fans, for deliberation by the nominating committee.
There are three categories in the Hall of Fame: thoroughbred horses, jockeys and trainers, and associates.
The Associates category includes horseowners, breeders, industry members, and also members of the media “who have told the story of horseracing in the print or visual media over a significant period of time.”
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