O’Brien heads for top trainer title

With seven more racing days to go before the end of the 2005 Arima Race Club season, O’Brien heads the trainers by a comfortable eight winners.

He has saddled 38 winners from 228 races to 29 for nearest rival and ex-champion Glenn Mendez from 135 races.

The Captain also saddled 35 horses to pass the post in second position and 34 third placed finishers.

Mendez had 31 second placers and 18 horses which finished in third spot among his runners.

Relatively new owner-trainer Bobby Persad is having a very good season, saddling 12 winners from the 93 races he had horses in, with 11 second placed runners and 14 which finished third. Currently, the O’Brien runners have been in grand form and it is unlikely any of his peers will catch up to him.

Turfites will pay to follow his runners on Betting Levy Day on Saturday.

He has speedster Integreat in the Betting Levy Board Sprint Classic over 1300 metres.

And he will be represented by the four-year-old Barba-dos-owned Reef Knot in the rich Diamond Stakes over 1350 metres, where the filly is likely to face anong others Invincibility, Fantastic Story, Top Of The Class and recent winner Lit d’Amour.

He will not have a runner in the Betting Levy Board Juvenile Sprint, but in the Derek Cozier Memorial Turf Classic over 1800 metres on the turf course he will saddle Condoleeza and Really Quiet against Crown Point who just missed out on giving trainer Mendez his third triple crown winner in four years.