Sport
11 March, 2025
Double for 'Barra' as racing overcomes eventful week
There was no shortage of drama at Buchanan Park on Saturday.
Mount Isa trainer-jockey Jason Babavorich celebrated a winning double on a day of drama at Buchanan Park on Saturday, with the final race of the day staged in near-dark conditions.
It capped off an eventful week for Mount Isa Race Club president Jay Morris.
With race meetings in the south-east called off due to the cyclone, it was Morris who showed initiative to make the call for Mount Isa to have its meeting upgraded to TAB status, making it one of just two Queensland programs that were broadcast on Saturday.
And while there was no direct benefit to the local club, it was a coup for the industry and sent a strong message that Mount Isa is a team player and can step up at short notice.
With a big crowd of around 800 piled into Buchanan Park, things almost came unstuck for Morris and his hardworking team when a storm arrived just before the first race, causing chaos at the track.
Stewards were left scrambling to ensure that it was safe to race with lightning in the area and the original start time of 2.42pm was pushed back almost two hours.
With the cut-off time declared to be 4.30pm, the program was able to kick off in the nick of time, finishing with long shadows covering the track in twilight conditions.
Babarovich took riding honours with a double – one for himself in Room For Squares, and another for Tanya Parry in Seiryu.
The training honours went to Parry, who returned to Julia Creek with a treble following the earlier wins of Just Stop It and Rogue ‘N’ Ready, ridden by Brooke Stower and Denicious Smith respectively.
Fellow Julia Creek trainer Kerry Krogh kicked off the meeting with a win in the maiden as David Sparks steered Ohmikkiusofine to an impressive win.
All roads lead to Cloncurry and District Race Club this Saturday for the first meeting of the Curry calendar, while the next meeting at Mount Isa Race Club will be on Saturday, March 22.