Hagdang Bato, Hot and Spicy rule MARHO racefest

MANILA, Philippines - Track icon Hagdang Bato crushed import Crucis and four others in the Amb. Eduardo M. Cojuangco Jr. (ECJ) Cup last Sunday in the 19th San Miguel Corp. (SMC)-MARHO Ruby Racing Festival, confirming his standing as the best thoroughbred of the season thus far.

The race was part of a 14-race card that also featured the six championship races of the Metropolitan Association of Race Horse Owners (MARHO) flagship racing program, this year dubbed the MARHO Ruby racefest, in celebration of the group’s 40th anniversary.

In the ECJ Cup, sponsored by the Philippine Racing Commission and held at San Lazaro Leisure Park, Hagdang Bato, a five-year-old owned and bred by Mandaluyong City Mayor Benhur Abalos, won wire-to-wire under the guidance of jockey Jonathan Hernandez.

Hernandez barely had to urge his mount, only showing the whip in the final few meters of the race to easily pocket the P1.2 million first prize. Strong Champion came in second, followed by Crucis in third and My Champ fourth.

Hagdang Bato (Quaker Ridge by Fire Down Under), trained by Ruben Tupas, narrowly beat the record for the 2,000 meter distance, clocking 2:04.6 (15-23-25’-25’-25’). The record is 2:04.4, set by Yes Pogi in 2011 and Wild Orchid and Stowaway Lass in 2005.

The ECJ Cup honors the founding chairman of Philracom and MARHO, both founded in 1974.

The 2,000-meter MARHO Ruby-SMC Classic was won by Joseph Dyhengco’s 4YO colt Hot and Spicy, guided by Jordan Cordova. Mayor Leonardo “Sandy” Javier Jr.’s Marinx, partnered with Patricio Dilema, ruled the MARHO Ruby-Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office Filly Mile, while in the counterpart MARHO Ruby-Philracom Colt Mile, it was Abalos’s Kanlaon with Val Dilema who shone.

The two 1,500-meter MARHO Ruby-Philracom Juvenile Colts and MARHO Ruby-Philracom Juvenile Fillies were won by Dyhengco’s Sky Hook under jockey Cordova and Felipe Vergara’s Driven with Kelvin Abobo, respectively.

The honors in the 1,000-meter MARHO Ruby-Manila Jockey Club Sprint went to SC Stockfarm’s Nemesis, steered by Christopher Garganta.

Seven trophy races were also held on Sunday, and 11 on Saturday, sponsored by Paris Match Farm, Ciara Marie Abalos Foundation, Enchanted Kingdom, Esicor, Manila Horsepower, Jade Bros. Freight International, Atty. Sixto S. Esquivias IV, Hygain Feeds, Uratex Foam, Caloocan City Vice-Mayor Macario Asistio III, Andok’s Litson Corp., Cool Summer Farm, Shelltex Bed, Mayor Oscar G. Malapitan, Transprint, Quezon City Coun. Victor Ferrer Jr., Siomai House, and Kia Motors.