Barnaby back to best with dominant Legal Light Trophy romp

Three weeks ago, he was chasing shadows. On Sunday, April 26, 2026, Barnaby cast his own. The American-bred colt, third behind Rideallday and Supernatural Power in the record-shattering Ian Levy Cup on April 6, put that form line to bed in no uncertain terms.

Sent off in the $1.4-million Legal Light Trophy at Caymanas Park, Barnaby turned the nine-furlong-and-25-yard (1,820m) Open Allowance feature into a one-horse show, coasting home 7¼ lengths clear in 1:54.2.

Raddesh Roman had it easy. Anthony Nunes had it planned. And the clock had it right: 25.3, 49.3, 1:14.1, 1:40.2 — splits that speak to a horse doing it within himself, then drawing off when asked.

This was Barnaby’s response to the doubters. His only prior try at nine furlongs and 25 yards on August 23, 2025 hadn’t gone well, finishing fourth as the 4-5 favourite. Sunday erased that memory. He broke clean, settled kindly, and when Roman gave him a shake at the three-furlong marker (600m), the race was over. The field was left chasing a reputation that’s now fully restored.

In the winners’ enclosure, Nigel Burke, nephew of Nunes, spoke for his uncle’s barn, and he didn’t need many words.

“Today was a test to him getting back to his true form, and he showed up with good class,” Burke said.

“He had trained well, and so we had expected him to run the way he did. He trained 49.1 coming into the race, which was a maintenance breeze for him,” he told the Jamaica Observer’s The Supreme Racing Guide.

With horses like Barnaby, Burke explained, you don’t hammer them at dawn.

“Horses like him you don’t have to kill him too much in the mornings. They just need to be kept happy and fit and they will just show up,” Burke stated.

The Ian Levy Cup on April 6 over 8 ½ furlongs (1,700m) was run in track-record time of 1:41.4.
Barnaby was third that day, beaten, but not disgraced, by two of the best in the land.

The cut back to Open Allowance company and the stretch out to nine furlongs and 25 yards proved the perfect recipe. He’s run the trip once before with little success. Version two was emphatic.

“I think he ran only one nine and 25 yards here once and I don’t think it was a great performance,” Burke admitted. “But today he actually showed what he can really do,” Burke said.

The Legal Light Trophy was Barnaby’s statement that the Ian Levy wasn’t his ceiling — it was his prep. The form is franked, the confidence is back, and the path forward is clear.

“Once he stays healthy and sound, I think he shall progress from here,” Burke said.

Girvano, ridden by Robert Halledeen, took second place, while Barnaby’s stablemate Neo Star (Tajay Suckoo) finished in third place.

Connections with Barnaby (Raddesh Roman) in the winners’ enclosure after winning the Legal Light Trophy on Sunday, April 26, 2026. (Photo: Karl Mclarty)