The Jamaica Star :: Sport :: Ahwhofah for 2008 Ja Oaks

Jimmie, Star Racing Writer

AHWHOFAH with Dane Nelson aboard. - file

THE Pick-9 is on the move again, jumping past its $1m guarantee after eluding punters last Saturday. The combination of SPANISH TOWN at 9-1 in the fourth race, KAMECHI at 8-1 in the seventh and TOUCHDOWN at 6-1 in the ninth ensured a $1.2m carryover for tomorrow's 12-race Oaks Day card.

Similar to last Saturday, tomorrow's card will also have 12 races lined up, featuring twin Super-6 bets, which were caught on last, paying $156,820 for winning bets covering races one to six and $42,351 for races seven to 12.

The Super-6 is back at its $500,000 guarantee, both early and late games, added to the $1.2m Pick-9, giving punters all of $2.2m in jackpots to chase tomorrow.

With the Oaks set as the 11th race, punters going after the second Super-6 and the Pick-9, which ends at the big event, will be all over their race forms, trying to nail the winner of the fillies-only 10-furlong event.

Guineas winner ALSAFRA, with Brian Harding, the only jockey to have ever won titles in Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, is expected to start favourite ahead of runner-up IT IS I.

However, champion trainer Wayne DaCosta's AHWHOFAH should prove her fifth-place finish in the Guineas all wrong by turning the table on her rivals.

Under a smarter ride from Dane Nelson, AHWHOFAH should return to winning ways against ALSAFRA, who she had convincingly beaten in the 1400-metre Thornbird Stakes.

Nelson took AHWHOFAH out of her natural running style down the backstretch, which caused her to get boxed in and her race was literally over from the 600m pole when he got out of the pocket and took the widest route into the lane while ALSAFRA got a dream run along the rail.

Perfect draw

AHWHOFAH, who has the perfect draw, out wide at post-position 15, from where she should clear the field, heading into the clubhouse turn.

ALSAFRA also has a cosy draw, gate four, from where she should use her speed to claim the rail, where she loves to run, putting her eyeball to eyeball with AHWHOFAH down the backstretch.

AWHOFAH's stamina limitations are being questioned but she had stalked and beat ALSAFRA in the Thornbird Stakes and should once again put away her rival as she has trained really well, galloping seven furlongs in 1:27.4 last Sunday morning.

Anthony Nunes' IT IS I is being touted as the perfect Oaks horse due to her relaxed style of running. However, she stands the risk of being outsped as was the case in the Guineas.

The other big race on the card, the 1200-metre Lady Geeta Trophy for Graded Stakes runners, the fifth event, should be won by Richard Azan's RAMPAGE with Shane Ellis aboard.

RAMPAGE has been slapped with topweight 60.5 kilos following back-to-back wins in the Eros and Arthur Jones Trophy races, both at 1200 metres. However, Azan's runner has been so impressive victory he's hard to oppose even with topweight.

Punters hunting bankers need look no further than Philip Feanny's four-timer - the well forward debutant, TWENTYFIRSTOFJUNE in the second at 1000 metres round, ISLA and HONEY BUNNY in races eight and nine, both at 1000 metres straight, and SUPER DAVE in the 12th at 1200 metres.