Bugle Notes unleashed an impressive burst of speed going home to stun an elite field that included a two-time defending champion and a Triple Crown winner, winning the rich 2019 Ambassador Eduardo M. Cojuangco Jr. Cup on Sunday at the Saddle & Clubs Leisure Park Racetrack in Naic, Cavite.
With jockey Jonathan B. Hernandez on its mount, Bugle Notes made its move at the halfway mark after running third in the pack as it grabbed the lead from Viva Morena and never let go, increasing it further down stretch to claim a six-length win in the prestigious race held in honor of the San Miguel Corp. Chairman, a stalwart in the horseracing industry.
The racing weekend was also highlighted by the 24th staging of the Metropolitan Association of Race Horse Owners (MARHO) Breeder’s Championships.
Bugle Notes finished with a fast time of 2:00.4 in the long 2,000-meter race, with quartertimes of 24, 23, 24, 24, 24.
“Ginandahan lang po ang alis. Pag-break in, bandera kaagad ako. Ang instruction, ang pinakamasamang puwesto sa ganitong kadami na kabayo, pang-apat o panlima. Pero napaganda pa kasi naging pangatlo kaagad. Pagdating ng medya milya, inaalagaan ko na puwesto ko, hinintay ko na rekta. Noong hinila ko, madami pa, punong puno pa,” said Hernandez of Bugle Notes’ emphatic win.
The victory, worth a whopping P1.8 million from the total guaranteed purse of P3.15 million by the sponsoring Philippine Racing Commission, ended the two-year reign of SC Stockfarm’s Hitting Spree and added fuel to the hot streak of the Bell Racing Stable, with owner Elmer de Leon personally receiving the special trophy donated by Amb. Cojuangco himself.
De Leon also owns Union Bell, a two-time winner in the 2019 Philracom Juvenile Fillies and Colts Stakes Race with an opportunity of scoring a three-race sweep on Dec. 1.
Runner-up Murika got P675,000 as runner-up, followed by third placer Truly Ponti, which earned P375,000. Super Sonic received P150,000 at fourth, while 2017 Triple Crown champion Sepfourteen settled for fifth, worth P100,000.
Noted breeders also hogged the spotlight in the racing festival, namely Mariano Tirona (Son Also Rises in the MARHO Sprint), Hermie Rivera (Scarborough Shoal in the MARHO Championship Classic and Iikot Lang in the MARHO-SC Stockfarm Trophy Race), Antonio Tan Jr. (Money in My Pocket in the MARHO Eduardo Calixto Memorial Race and Boss Emong in the MARHO Ciara Marie Abalos Foundation Trophy Race), Antonio Coyco (Lucky Saver in the MARHO Manila Horsepower Organization Race), Leonardo Javier Jr. (Obra Maestra in the MARHO 3YO Colt and Filly Mile) and Vincent Go Bon (I Don’t Mind in the MARHO Siomai House Trophy Race).
More big stakes races are still in the offing from Philracom in the coming months. After the Ambassador Eduardo M. Cojuangco Jr. Cup is the 2nd leg of the 3YO Imported/Local Challenge on Nov. 24.
December proves to be the busiest horseracing month for big races with the Philracom’s holding of the 3rd leg of the Juvenile Fillies and Colts Stakes Races on the 1st, the Grand Sprint Championship on the 15th, the Chairman’s Cup and the 3rd leg of the 3YO Imported/Local Challenge Series on the 29th and the Juvenile Championship on the 31st.
