Guyana Cup 2022: Thousands turn out to witness Alado champion Guyana Cup

The long lines of traffic on the West Coast Berbice Public Road on Sunday perfectly epitomised the craze that arose for horseracing following a COVID-19 pandemic-induced break. All roads led to the Rising Sun Turf Club, where the pounding of hooves and photo finishes ignited the track for the Guyana Cup 2022.
When the literal dust had settled, the likes of ‘Alado’, ‘Early Bird’ and ‘Colour of Sacrifice’ were the big winners on Sunday evening.

That was a look at the moment that most fans had been waiting for. Nothing short of a photo finish was good enough for the day’s feature race, the Banks DIH Guyana Cup, wherein Alado overtook Wild Texas Tom on the back stretch to champion the anticipated mile-long race.

That final race was filled with thrills even before the start, as ‘Vera’s Finally’ put on a show before settling down enough to make it into her stall.
Alado and Wild Texas Tom were neck-to-neck along the back straight, before Alado pulled ahead on the turn. Manoeuvring the turn well was Wild Texas’ jockey, to come level with his opponent. However, with one furlong to go, eventual Champion Jockey Colin Ross inspired Alado’s strong finish for the coveted Guyana Cup.

“The weather had us really bad, and we were in fear of 2019, what happened. We worked really hard to get here today. We only had two weeks to prepare the ground, prepare the horses. It was very hard; we weren’t sure if the horses would be fit. The jockey and the team, we couldn’t have done it without them,” Nasrudeen Mohamed Jr of Jumbo Jet Stables shared after winning big.
On the other hand, Champion Jockey Ross related, “It’s a good feeling to win it the fourth time, you know. It’s a real good feeling, because we working real hard for the past two months, real hard for this race here. The weather wasn’t good, and the the last two week we had the good weather and push in the lil work, and we got here today.
“When I reach by the three furlongs, the last three furlongs, I said I got it,” Ross said, explaining at which point he knew he had the victory in the bag.
The Val’s Construction Sprint Classic brought similar excitement, as jockey Luis Pinhero steered Early Bird to his first win in Guyana. Early Bird galloped past the finish line ahead of Converter, Looking to Heaven and Regal Intention respectively.
At the one-furlong mark, it was still anybody’s race, but a confident Pinhero began celebrating 50 metres out, while Converter’s jockey whipped and whipped at his animal, but his proddings were to no avail, as Early Bird stayed true to his name and flew across the finish line.
The other one-mile race was powered by Associated Construction Services, and witnessed Colour of Sacrifice leaving it all on the track for the victory.
Like a Million, Amazing Grace and Black Time were no match for the winner, but settled for second to fourth respectively.
Owner and trainer of Colour of Sacrifice, Trinidadian National Shaun Mohamed, after getting a taste, is looking forward to more of the horseracing action in Guyana.

P“This preparation was well over three months back. We come to this race with a lot of problems with this horse. As you could see, after the race, he didn’t really hold up that well, you understand. But we’re thankful for everything that we got here today,” Mohamed revealed.
He went on to add, “We didn’t have much time on Guyana track, we only arrived here Monday, we had a few days in Corentyne and we had 2-3 days of training. We didn’t get much training.
“We have Memories in the last race, which is the Guyana Cup. According to how Memories performs, we’ll be coming back again for the President’s Cup,” Mohamed said about his intentions to return to Guyana for competition.
In other individual prizes, Jumbo Jet Stable’s Nasrudeen Mohamed was adjudged the best trainer, as the Sunday races were a success.
The entertainment to follow saw thousands of fans staying late at the Rising Sun Turf Club for the packed roster.

Complete Results:
Race One – J3 Non-Starter and L Class Classic (1100m)
Winner – Face D’ Fire
Second – Cash N Carry
Third – Foreign Link
Fourth – Perfect Drift

Race Two – G3 and Lower (1400m)
Winner – Unsettled
Second – It’s My Choice
Third – Goldon D’or
Fourth – Marconi

Race Three – J1 and Lower (1400m)
Winner – Perfect Dream
Second – Ebony Prince
Third – Trump
Fourth – Sunday Silence

Race Four: Two-year-old Guyana Bred (1100m)
Winner – Double Jet
Second – GT Boss
Third – Legacy
Fourth – El Dorado Queen

Race Five – J3 Non-Starter and L Class Classic (1100m)
Winner – Red Star
Second – Perfect Storm
Third – Catholic Boy
Fourth – Quiet Warrior

Race Six – Three-Year-Old Derby (One mile)
Winner – Colour of Sacrifice
Second – Like A Million
Third – Amazing Grace
Fourth – Black Time

Race Seven – E1 and Lower and horses bred in the USA (1100m)
Winner – Early Bird
Second – Converter
Third – Looking to Heaven
Fourth – Regal Intension

Race Eight – Guyana Cup (One Mile)
Winner – Alado
Second – Wild Texas Tom
Third – Our Stuie
Fourth – Everesting