The fawn brindle male can set the national mark with his 11th stakes title tonight at Derby Lane.
By BOB PUTNAM
Published May 22, 2004
ST. PETERSBURG - Bahama Mama kennel co-owner Francesca Field waits by the rail wearing her familiar Cheshire-cat grin as her top greyhound, Cayman Went, sprints around the final turn.
Field has been singing "I told you so" in perfect tune since Cayman Went came back from injury last season. On this night two months ago, during the final of the Sprint Classic, Field was in good voice again.
"Cayman Went is the best dog in the country!" she said.
The fawn brindle male has proved that, winning 30 of 36 races at Derby Lane this season, setting the track record in a five-sixteenth-mile race (30.02 seconds) and posting the season's best time in a three-eights-mile race (37.19).
Tonight, Cayman Went has a chance to solidify himself as the best ever, at least when it comes to stakes racing.
The greyhound is the overwhelming favorite in the final of the T.L. Weaver Memorial Stakes. The five-sixteenth-mile event is the 10th on the program. With a win, Cayman Went will set the national record with his 11th stakes title, breaking a 53-year-old mark held by Real Hunstman.
That's something even Field could not predict.
"Of course the goal is to always get as many wins as possible and to win every stakes race," Field said. "But I didn't even think about any sort of record until somebody told me a few weeks ago.
"It's exciting to go down in the history books. I'll definitely be involved, cheering and screaming for my superstar. After all, somebody has to promote him."
Bahama Mama's other owner, Donna Marie Moore, will spend today fretting, fearing the unforeseen.
Moore knows there are a lot of things that can go wrong in a race. An injury. A fall. A slow start.
Cayman Went has experienced all three.
On March 22, 2003, the dog was stepped on and pulled up lame in qualifying rounds of the Distance Classic. He had two large screws inserted into his hock and was given a 65 percent chance to resume racing.
Cayman Went missed the rest of the season at Derby Lane. He made his comeback at Tampa Greyhound in August and has become one of the nation's most celebrated greyhounds.
In a qualifying round of the Distance Classic this season, Cayman Went tumbled awkwardly and finished fourth. The dog was not injured and rebounded to win the stakes race. That started a 13-race win streak that ended with a third-place finish in Wednesday's semifinal of the T.L. Weaver Memorial Stakes.
"I'm more of the worry wart, and I try not to look at the records or anything like that," Moore said. "But it's hard not to when it's staring right at you.
"It boggles my mind that he's won that many stakes races, which is impressive considering it's a career mark and he's done that within a year."
And Cayman Went might not be done.
Moore said the dog will try to qualify for the St. Petersburg Derby on June 19. After that, Cayman Went's future is unknown.
"We're waiting to see what Tampa's stakes race schedule is like," Field said.
For now, the only thing that matters is tonight's race.
"We want that stakes race record," Field said. "Everybody loves a record."
