Harvey double shakes up Reggae 6

BEBETO HARVEY signalled his resurgence at Caymanas Park with two winners on Sunday, impacting the Reggae 6 aboard Ian Roberts' bred, trained and owned SO LUCKY AM I at odds of 8-1, flooring 1-2 favourite WAH A GWAAN in the Mercury Sprint at five furlongs straight.

SO LUCKY AM I was the longest shot on the Reggae 6, followed by ATILA landing the fifth at odds of 7-1 with Tevin Foster for a hefty payout of $447,817.

Returning this Saturday with an $18.5 million single-winner bonus, the Reggae 6 is expected to reach fever-pitch on Ash Wednesday's mandatory payout day, part of the I Love February promotion, featuring millions of dollars in exotic bets, which started with Saturday's Ketch 9 and yesterday's Early 5-Star, which returned dividends of $1,024,742 and $36,405, respectively.

Dane Dawkins rounded off the year's first dual meet on six winners after landing a half of Saturday's 10-race card, including four Reggae 6 victories.

Champion jockey 2022, wintering locally from Canada's Assiniboia Downs since August's Jamaica Derby, Dawkins' Saturday heroics moved from fourth in the riders' table to second on nine winners to which he added MULLIGAN MAN yesterday, motoring from off the pace with the United States-bred three-year-old to land the fifth at five and a half furlongs on his second outing at odds of 3-1.

Harvey, who had challenged Omar Walker relentlessly in 2016 for the champion's fifth of six jockeys' titles, and won the inaugural Mouttet Mile in 2022 aboard Philip Feanny's EXCESSIVE FORCE, closed the nine-race card astride 6-5 favourite TIGERAMEDAT, collaring Robert Halledeen trying to steal a march with HIGH DIPLOMACY.

Meanwhile, BARNABY left it late yesterday to mow down stablemate NEO STAR close home, winning the 'Lindy' Delapenha Memorial at a mile in 1:39.2, down two classes among overnight-allowance winners, taking two-time defending champion jockey Raddesh Roman to 11 winners atop the standings..

Seventh-place finisher in the 2024 Mouttet Mile, BARNABY had last raced on August 23, returning off a near five-month lay-up, finishing fourth behind GIRVANO, FUNCAANDUN and BLUE VINYL in the Distinctly Irish at nine furlongs and 25 yards.

Exploding against the rail with Roman, BARNABY's class-difference was all too obvious, a deceptive three-quarters of a length ahead of NERO to complete by the five-year-old son of Tapiture, who won by 14 lengths when debuting locally at seven and a half furlongs in November 2024.

Racing continues on Saturday, followed by the February 18 Ash Wednesday meet.