Subratie, Dawkins upstage title challengers at Caymanas

Trainer Gary Subratie and jockey Dane Dawkins yesterday combined to post a rare hat-trick, upstaging the players locked in championship battles on the 10-race card. The jockey-trainer combination dominated races four to six, scoring with NUCLEAR FLIGHT, BOLD AFLAIR, and 3-1 chance K D FLYER, who made all to beat a good field at five furlongs straight.

NUCLEAR FLIGHT fought off old rival ANOTHER VIGOROUS and had enough in reserve to turn back RAS EMANUEL, by a length and a half, at five furlongs straight, clocking a fast 57.2 for her fifth win from eight starts.

United States-bred BOLD AFLAIR, running for the second time after finishing down the track at five and a half furlongs on November 3, reported with blinkers and figure-eight fitted, to win by three lengths, making all the running at six and a half furlongs.

Hat-trick closed

K D FLYER closed the hat-trick with a determined run, drawn widest in the nine- horse field on the faster stands' side, and used his light weight, 110lb, to beat DISABILITY CHARM and ORPHEUS, both of whom had their riders dismount after finishing the event lame.

Meanwhile, leading rider Anthony Thomas won the eighth event with a well-timed finish aboard 4-1 chance LUANA, rallying in mid-track to beat rail-running TRINI MAGIC by a half-length.

Thomas' lone win extended his lead to eight ahead of Panamanian Dick Cardenas, who went winless after his three-timer on Saturday.

Champion trainer Wayne DaCosta and his challenger, Anthony Nunes, were also winless but picked up purse money, which made little difference in the $2.7M gap between the two.

Nunes, however, is expected to make inroads on Saturday when racing continues at Caymanas Park, with the Pick 3 Super Challenge being the feature in which he has four runners declared, including the favourite, CORAZON.