Champion jockey Anderson Trotman, having destroyed the competition in the Bubba’s Sunday Buffet Breakfast Jockey Challenge during the first season, will want to continue his good form in the second season.
In typical Trotman fashion, he won 16 races with a strike percentage of 22 and earnings of $233 147.
Not only was he a comfortable winner – five wins better than his nearest rival – what separated him from the top four riders was his consistency.
Trotman’s treble on day two aboard Kamazetta, Reward Me and Papa Gone West was supported with six riding doubles on day three, four, five, six, seven and ten. He showed the importance of riding for a solid stable as he was able to boot home nine wins for Hopefield Stable including a hat-trick.
Rest assured there will be no respite in the upcoming season where the King Bubba Triple Platta Jockey Challenge is up for grabs. This could easily see him being crowned the Bubba’s Champion Rider of the Year.
Apprentice Affrie Ward found himself in the firing line of the jocks room at the Savannah for the first time ever in his career. This performance became evident after his move from Springhead Stable to that of trainer Richard Deane and son Adam Deane who together supplied him with all his wins.
With earnings of $108 122, Ward, who earned himself a win percentage of 28, dominated sprint races winning 92 per cent of his total races during the season.
He had a day six treble of Midnight Run, A.P. Vincero and Boo, along with days seven and 10 doubles by which time he quickly formed a nice partnership with rookie trainer Adam Deane for a combination of five victories. Ward’s star equine was Jamaica Moon with whom he shared three wins.
Third on the table goes to Reshawn Latchman whose win percentage stands at 15 having won 10 and ½ races Margarita (dead heat) with War In Gunsite; he sparked on day eight winning astride Janak’s Gold, San Souci and Sour Sop for earnings of $180 668.
Jockey Rickey Walcott, who heads off to Santa Rosa Park to partner Voldemort in the Trinidad Derby on Wednesday, just snatched the fourth position from Antonio Whitehall. Locked on the same number of wins, the second position tiebreaker favoured the 22.5 win percentage journeyman who had earnings of $186 998.
Walcott opened the season with victories aboard Desert Man, Belly Dancer and Dunwiddat. He then hit doubles on day six and 10. While several of the more experienced and leading riders struggled to make consistent appearances in the winner’s circle, special mention must be made of rookie apprentice Rasheed Hughes.
Mostly attached to former champion trainer Andrew Nunes, Hughes displayed good judgement when booting home his seven winners during the season to be the brightest spark among the apprentice riders.
