THULEAN wins Premier’s Cup, USVI horse owners ride away with nearly $60K in prizes

St Thomas’s THULEAN has once again asserted itself as king of the racetrack; sprinting to victory at the Ellis Thomas Downs in Sea Cow’s Bay to win the Premier’s Cup at the August Tuesday races.

Along with the coveted trophy, the young horse and its jockey Kenneth Pellot also reeled in a $25,000 purse. TOTALLY EVIL claimed second place while St Thomas’s MY RUNNING MATE finished third.

Five horses ran the race which saw GIANT VALLEY from Top Priority Racing Stables finishing in last place.

Commenting on the defeat, owner of Top Priority Racing Stables and President of the VI Horse Owners Association Lesmore Smith told BVI News: “We will be back.”

“I think he [THULEAN] had more pedigree and age is also a factor,” reasoned. Smith further said GIANT VALLEY is roughly nine years old whereas THULEAN is a much younger horse.

Other results

In the meantime, the USVI horse owners proved to be a force to be reckoned with when they walked away with close to $60,000 in winnings.

FORMAL TALENT from St Thomas won the first race with a purse of $7,500 which was one mile for class D horses.

In second place was LIL FOOL, followed by JACK FALLON also from St Thomas.

NEVERENUF D’ORO, who made its debut from St Thomas, won the second one-mile race for Class C and D mares and fillies with a purse of $8,000. In second place was MY SONG VENEZUELAN and ATRA BY ME who are both from St Thomas.

In race-three, FLASHIN CAT from St Thomas was victorious in the one-mile run for Class B and C horses. That race came with a purse of $8,700. SAL GET came in the second place followed by HAYLEE’S HERE and PUTTINONASHOW who are both from St Thomas.

St Thomas’s BARRABAS KEY coppped first place in the fourth race of the day, which was a 6 ½ furlong sprint. It had a purse of $9,000. The second and third-place finishers were St Thomas’ BIT GROWTH and Tortola’s CENTRE GOLD.

BVI’s redemtion

In the fifth race of the day, the BVI had its first win with SPECIAL COUNSEL from The Boys Racing Stables claiming the victory.

Fast on its heels was HOLY GIACOMO and NADIAE’S IMAGE to claim the other two top spots. The one-mile race for mares and fillies carried a purse of $10,500.

In the seventh race, which was a little more than a mile, Tortola’s ONE WAY TO FAME claimed victory its debut run.

Taking second and third was CRYPTO HOLD and LUNCH BREAK.

A total of 19 horses took part in what Smith described as a ‘good day’ on the track.