Top Of The Class ‘King of Santa Rosa’

WHO will dare to oppose Top Of The Class in this year’s Caribbean Champion Stakes?

After another fluent and captivating performance on Saturday last, sprinting away from his five “challengers,” in the fifth running of the rich Bookmaker’s Association of Trinidad and Tobago West Indies Thoroughbred Racing Association Classic over 2000 metres there could be numerous withdrawals from the 14 horses for which owners paid first subscription. A second subscription of $400 is due and payable today, and one wonders how many owners will venture to pay up. Once again, Top Of The Class showed he was streets apart from his three-year-old peers, racing alongside Super Grey for most of the WITRA event before scooting clear, leaving his “rival” for dead in the final 600 metres to chalk up a five-and-a-half length triumph, as easy as he pleased.

The Student will be meeting older horses like Millenium Reign, stablemate and co-triple crown star Carnival Messiah, Phantom Menace and the “Iron Horse” Chanticleer  if they all pay that second sub for the November 29 race over 1800 metres. But it is to be noted, the son of Freshly Squeezed/Crescendo easily disposed of both Chanticleer and Millenium Reign when they met on August 23 over 1750 metres. At the finish, Top Of The Class was three-and-a-quarter lengths ahead of the Iron Horse, with Millenium Reign another four-and-a-quarter lengths further back. He is undoubtably the King of Santa Rosa now and few will want to oppose Glenn Mendez’s charge when he strides out at Santa Rosa Park for a race which could bring his owners another big CLICO bonus prize.