MY ‘Prancealot’ (Sir Prancealot-Tricolore), masterfully ridden by Noel C. Lunar, pulled the rug from under his opponents in taking the ‘Philracom-National Press Club Cup,’ held at the Manila Jockey Club in Carmona, Cavite, last June 24, 2022
A virtual longshot, the Bay Colt owned by Mr. Peter Limjoco showed steadfastness in pulling away from his more highly-fancied opponents by blowing all comers and even winning with a five-length margin for the 1,500 meters race with clips of 25-24′-25-26′ for a total time of 1:41 and in the process, grabbing the P300,000 top prize.
Second place went to ‘Shanghai Noon,’ third to ‘Declare For Flare,’ fourth to ‘Work Bell’ and the fifth place to ‘Sudden Impact.’
Trainer Richard ‘Boy’ Gutierrez said, “My instructions was not to push the horse for the lead early on. Simply put yourself in contention and strike at the proper time,” an instruction followed by Lunar and which resulted to the major upset.
“It was only when he passed the opposition at the homestretch that I saw that he was about to win. But of course, I was still wary of any others who might suddenly catch up, owner Limjoco said in the post-race interview.
NPC president Lydia Bueno was with immediate past president Paul Gutierrez and other Club officials during the awarding ceremonies where they also presented Philippine Racing
Commission (Philracom) chairman, Aurelio ‘Reli’ de Leon with a Certificate of Appreciation for the commission’s support to the oldest media organization in the country.
“We at the Philippine Racing Commission would also like to thank the National Press Club for their undying support for the local horseracing industry,” de Leon, for his part, said.
It would be the eight staging of the NPC-Philracom Benefit Race that seeks to augment the NPC’s fund to finance its many projects including its continuing physical improvement project and educational subsidy of the children of its members.