Gold Circle Pty (Ltd)

Today's Racing :

Flyer ready for lift-off

David Thiselton
NOORDHOEK Flyer, who is currently 8-10 favourite for Sunday’s KRA Guineas at Greyville, looked a picture of health at Clairwood yesterday and the Dean Kannemeyer yard are confident he won’t disappoint his growing legion of fans.
“He put up a good gallop at Greyville last Thursday,” said Kannemeyer’s Clairwood assistant, Albie Going, “Karl Neisius flew up for the gallop and was very pleased with him. When the jockey is confident you can always be very happy.” The chestnut son of Pivotal also did well in his final serious workout on Monday at Clairwood with Bernard Fayd’herbe up.Such has been the impressive style of Noordhoek Flyer’s most recent performances that he looks very hard to oppose despite his less than ideal draw of eleven. However, the false rail will be set at a quite narrow five metres which won’t make his task any easier. The Herman Brown yard are very pleased with the Galileo Australian-bred colt, Absolute Heretic, who is quoted at 12-1. They said he was ideally suited to about 2 000m, but was fresh and working very well so should be effective over the mile. The Dennis Drier yard were pleased with Clearly Silver’s preparation.This Silvano gelding ran to the best rating of all the horses in the Byerley Turk over 1 400m on April 11 at Scottsville where he carried topweight. The clash between the two potential superstars, the Glen Kotzen-trained Imperious Star and the Mike de Kock-trained Gibraltar Blue, in the KRA Fillies Guineas on Sunday is also eagerly awaited. Imperious Star has the better of the draws by far, barrier two compared to Gibraltar Blue’s 15. However, the latter is still quoted as favourite at 16-10 with Imperious Star at 3-1. This is no doubt due to the manner of her 5,5 length victory on South African debut in which she was full of running despite having pulled herself around the field, a normally energy sapping manoeuvre. Gilbraltar Blue is still in Johannesburg and will arrive at Summerveld on Friday. Imperious Star is a long striding sort and has Felix Coetzee aboard. She won the Umzimkhulu Stakes over 1 400m at Scottsville in comfortable style despite conceding weight all around. She will enjoy the step up in trip.Two Cape contenders, the Stephen Page-trained Field Flower and the Mike Bass-trained Ashbrook, have both travelled well and their trainers are pleased with their progress. In other news from around the country, Dylan Cunha successfully predicted the deluge of rain on the Highveld last weekend and did not transport Strategic News up to Johannesburg for his intended race in the Champions Challenge. Cunha has therefore been able to keep his horse fit at Summerveld, while some of his opponents up in Johannesburg have had their work this week effected by rain. Strategic News will travel on Friday. The Gary Alexander yard are fortunate to have a treadmill which they have used to keep Pierre Jourdan ticking over.Dean Alexander said that the Turffontein beach track had also been in use which has enabled those without treadmills to keep their big-race horses in shape.
Randjesfontein trainers were able to do some work on Tuesday, but they have overall appeared to have had more problems keeping their horses ticking over than Turffontein’s. This wouldn’t have effected Mike de Kock too badly as he has a treadmill. The worst effected horses will probably be the likes of the Brown-trained Intellectual and Lion’s Blood, who travelled up the day before last Saturday’s intended race. Arriving as close to the race as possible is the best way to handle altitude unless you allow at least two weeks to acclimatise.
The altitude might now effect the Brown pair’s performances. In other news the Lucky Houdalakis-trained J J The Jet Plane has had only one gallop since arriving back home from England. Houdalakis was still targeting the Grade 1 Golden Horse Casino Sprint on May 29, but wanted to get at least one race into him before then.

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