THE score is one each, and the ‘return bout’ of Jumbo Jet Thoroughbred Committee Race of Champions will be the ‘Rumble at the Sun.’

The exciting one-day horse-race meet will take centre stage at the Rising Sun Turf Club (RSTC), Rising Sun, West Coast, Berbice, on Sunday, April 28, 2024.

It will be the revenge showdown between heroine Bossalina, who will represent Mahaicony, and Spankhurst from Armadale. She inflicted the lone defeat on 2023 Horse-of-the-Year winner Spankhurst, in the feature event on New Year’s Day at Rising Sun.

Spankhurst bounced back, beating her in the rematch at Rising Sun one month later, levelling the score line.

However, Deleep Esreepersaud owner/trainer of Bossalina revealed prior to that clash his Canada-bred mare had a setback, and she was not supposed to race. He admitted he made a mistake racing her in that race. He made amends by purposely missing Port Mourant Easter Cup on Sunday. Esreepersaud said the time out gave him the time to prepare Bossalina for her return clash with Spankhurst on Sunday, April 28, at Rising Sun.

Spankhurst, owned by Jumbo Jet Racing Stables, trotted up – scoring unchallenged in gate to wire fashion in the Easter Cup at Port Mourant from Jessica Pride and Stolen Money, both of whom dead-heat for the runner-up slot.

Stolen Money, a recent Canada-bred import owned by Simply Royal Racing stables, on the other hand, built his confidence by recording his first career success at Judge Kennard racecourse last month. That success installed Stolen Money as the considered biggest threat to Spankhurst heading into the Easter Cup.

However, the roan/grey met with interference in the race, but still managed to finish in eye-catching fashion to share the runner-up slot with Jessica’s Pride.
The gelding came from last, because of his troubled run, to finish joint second.

Ronaldo Appadu, the rider of Stolen Money in the Easter Cup, claimed he was fouled by Youvin Cheefoon riding Beckman James coming out of the gates. He added passing the first turn, he was kept,and only mid-way up the backstretch he got his mount in the clear, but the race was over.

Cheefoon admitted coming out of the gates his mount did contact Stolen Money, but it was not intentional, while Appadu claimed that he was also fouled at the first turn passing the finish line by Cheefoon. Cheefon explained, “The horses on my outside was coming down on me, at the corner. I could not do anything other than try, and remain on my horse, and Stolen Money got tightened. I suffered a cut on my foot from the rail also.”

With this hard luck in running, Stolen Money will also get his chance to avenge that defeat to Spankhurst on Sunday, April 28, 2024, at Rising Sun.

The organisers of the day’s event, the Jumbo Jet Thoroughbred Racing Committee (JJTRC) revealed they have drafted a seven-race card that was supposed to be advertised tomorrow. They promised to meet their commitment, but are tentatively looking at making the programme an eight-race card.

The feature event will be over 1,600 metres, which will carry a rich purse of $3.7 million local currency, and purses for all the races, amounting to $10 million in local currency.