Vaal-based Johan Janse van Vuuren has successfully found a sound base in the tranquil surrounds of the Ashburton training centre from which to raid Champions Season and he saddles ten runners at today’s Greyville poly track meeting where he looks to be in for a good afternoon.

Van Vuuren has also tempted champion jockey Gavin Lerena to delay his return to the UK to partner New Predator in Saturday’s Gr1 Mercury Sprint and also to try and make amends on the smart gelding Doosra in the Racing. It’s A Rush Handicap that heads today’s card.

Doosra has lost his way a little after a barn-storming start to his career and has dropped in the handicap from a career high of 98 to today’s 94, two pounds lower than when he was heavily supported in the market to win the eThekwini Sprint run on July day.

New Predator (Nkosi Hlophe)

He finished six lengths adrift of the winner Bishop’s Bounty but it was a race not without incident. Doosra clipped heels coming out of the gate for which Keagan de Melo picked up a suspension but more was to come as he was never out of trouble in the straight after running into serious traffic.

With a plum draw, he looks capable of making amends today but he does face a competitive field.

Buffalo Soldier is another that has lost his way a touch but has been up against some strong opposition since returning from a break in April. This will be his third run after that rest and now slightly down in class he looks a serious threat to Doosra.

Joey Ramsden obviously has a high opinion of Macduff after running him in the Sun Met and also entering him for the Vodacom Durban July, so back to a sprint for his last start, many can be forgiven for thinking that the 1200m trip would prove too short. However, fitted with blinkers, he finished like an express train and ran out a smart winner. Today’s seven furlongs would appear to be more to his liking and the Australian import is another to consider along with Pillar Of Hercules and Never Settle.

Palladium has been a frustrating horse to follow, having run up a string of promising performances but not following up when expected. So, although he is struggling for his next win he takes a big drop in class when he runs in the last and Charles Laird’s runner can finally get it right. Dennis Drier is involved in a tight tussle with Duncan Howells for the KZN trainer’s championship and he will be looking to Friend Request to cut back on his rival’s narrow lead. Friend Request was a convincing winner over course and distance last time out and has a strong chance of following up at Palladium’s expense.

Janse van Vuuren can start his run in the second where he is triple-handed. Picture Me is a first timer by Elusive Fort and White Winter a filly by Warm White Night, but stable companion Virga has had two outings, the last time finishing a distant runner-up to subsequent Gr 1 Allan Robertson Championship winner Brave Mary. Unless there is a springer amongst the first timers that form looks solid enough.

Van Vuuren saddles Shakespeare Inlove in the second. She found some market support when making a promising enough debut and should come on lengths from that effort.

A quick Van Vuuren treble is on the cards with Hard Ball in the third. The Australian import has been knocking at the door for some time now and steps up to what could prove to be a more suitable trip. Two possible dangers are Roy Had Enough and Air Salute, the pair finishing within a length of each other last time out.

By Andrew Harrison

Gold Standard, the forgotten man of this season’s three-year-old crop, is now back in training with next January’s Queen’s Plate and Sun Met obvious targets.

Glen Kotzen had the Vodacom Durban July on his shopping list after the colt finished a half-length second to William Longsword in the Cape Guineas and fourth to Whisky Baron in the Met, but he was forced to reconsider.

He said yesterday: “We found Gold Standard had a small segment on each fetlock and, while he was never unsound, we decided to clean them up and set him up for next season rather than take him to Durban. He is now back in work and doing great.”

Gold Standard is rated a long way in front of the three-year-olds who went close in the July. The handicappers have him on a mark of 115 compared with the 107 of Al Sahem and Edict Of Nantes.

Kotzen, though, reckons to give South Side only one more run even though the Pathfork three-year-old made it four wins from her last five starts when running the opposition ragged in the 1 000m conditions plate at Kenilworth last Saturday.

He explained: “She is not the soundest of fillies and she doesn’t take her runs that well so it’s more than likely that she will be retired to stud at the end of the season.”

He bought her for only R10 000 at the Bloodstock SA Suncoast KZN Yearling Sale -”She was a beautiful filly and very athletic but she had bad legs and bad knees.”

By Michael Clower

Punters face a tough card at the Vaal tomorrow and many will be banking on Mike de Kock and Anthony Delpech to help them along.

Delpech, former stable jockey to De Kock, has two rides for his former boss and both look to have outstanding chances.

The first comes in the opening leg of the PA where B Twenty One will be a popular choice. She stays well and her last two wins have been over course and distance. In fact she is unbeaten in three outings over the trip and does come up against slightly weaker here.

Anthony Delpech (Liesl King)

However, Brian Wiid sends out Lee’s Pick, who although not featuring in the Gr1 SA Derby, was runner up in the Derby Trial to Vodacom Durban July runner Pagoda who finished second in the SA Derby. That’s useful form and the gelding looks to be in with a strong chance.

Delpech and De Kock team up again in the Racing Association Handicap where High Seas Beauty looks primed for her second win.

The daughter of Epsom Derby winner High Chapparal has been restricted to sprints at recent outings and her pedigree suggests that this seven-furlong trip would be more within her compass.

De Kock has a second strong to his bow here in Biblical Susan who, if ignoring her last effort when fading badly late, has some useful form. She has Gavin Lerena aboard, fresh from a double at Scottsville on Sunday where he captained the Highveld Hawks to victory in the New Turf Carriers Rider Cup.

Delpech has picked up another strong ride in Khaleesi for Lucky Houdalakis in the eighth.  The filly has been in good form to stronger and although she does have a fair weight to shoulder she could prove a touch too good for this field. St John Gray saddles his home-bred Burundi Bush who has been in top form. She has a handy weight and looks capable of giving Khaleesi a run for her money. Also in the scrum is Ponchielli who was not disgraced when taking on stronger last time out but will need to repeat to have a chance.

Sean Tarry is in the form of his life and Goodytwoshoes can add to his already bulging stakes tally. The daughter of Mambo In Seattle has come good of late and looks to have more to come and a hat-trick is on the cards. A threat could be Beckoning who was much improved with the addition of blinkers and can follow up on her last win for St John Gray. Also a danger may be Pearl Valley who was only caught late by Goodytwoshoes last time out. She has a light weight and can go one better.

By Andrew Harrison

Riaan van Reenen and Carl Burger have long believed in getting their horses as fit as they possibly can and now the partners have a new weapon in their armoury, one that was almost totally denied to them previously.

“You used to be only allowed to gallop feature horses at Kenilworth,” Van Reenen explained. “It was a bad system and people had to cheat it to survive. Now, though, the smaller trainers are given a chance because they allow you gallops in proportion to the number of runners you have.”

The result was two juvenile winners for the stable at Kenilworth on Saturday and, almost unheard of this season even among the bigger Cape Town yards, the double was achieved with newcomers. They were both long shots, Rebels Spirit coming home at 36-1 and Midnight Moonlight scoring at 25-1.

Dean Kannemeyer (Nkosi Hlophe)

“Both horses had come here twice to gallop and so they were ready,” said Van Reenen. “Under the old system they would have needed it badly.”

Midnight Moonight is the first winner to carry the colours of Fred Green who has an interest in Marinaresco. Green, semi-retired after selling his health care business two years ago, has been owning horses since 2013 when he became involved in racing through his Hammie’s Rugby Club friendship with Bryn Ressell and Marsh Shirtliff.

“The first horses I had weren’t that good and so they said they would give me a share in a decent one,” said the tall Green, explaining how he ended up with a tenth of a July winner. “I now have shares in five horses and winning with one in my own colours was quite an occasion.”

So too was it for the Van Reenen-Burger association because they completed the first treble of their partnership when Rocketeer, despite drifting from 3-1 to 7-1, landed the Tabonline.co.za Handicap. All three winners were ridden by Craig Bantam who missed the previous three meetings after being laid low by ‘flu and bronchitis. The 21-year-old has now ridden 27 winners.

It was an afternoon of shock results with Ossie Noach adding to the party by coming home at 66-1 on the Adam Marcus-trained Lavender Ridge in the last, much to the delight of the bookmakers, particularly those on course who had to operate in a pneumonia-inducing Antarctic wind tunnel all afternoon.

But the horse who really made their day was their old friend Cossack Guard in the 1 400m maiden. They could hardly believe it when punters went for him yet again – despite seven consecutive seconds – but those who backed Corne Orffer’s mount were convinced that Dean Kannemeyer had solved the problem by fitting blinkers and the 12-10 shot went off as if the hounds of hell were snapping at his heels.

But he was a spent force inside the final furlong and you could hear the cheers from the layers when he managed only sixth behind MJ Byleveld on Querari’s Secret, the only two-year-old in the field and also fitted with first time blinkers – on the advice of Vaughan Marshall’s assistant Adele Alsop.

Justin Snaith was on the mark with Cigar Boy (Jonathan: “He was a 100 handicap horse at one time and he has come all the way down to 66”) and Red Ginger while the Glen Kotzen-trained South Side was the most impressive winner of the day when galloping the opposition off their feet under Richard Fourie in the conditions plate.

By Michael Clower

Clifton Sunset has been knocking at the door for some time now and after finishing runner-up in five of her ten starts she is due a change of luck. But Brett Crawford’s filly faces some tough opposition in the Itsarush.co.za FM Handicap at Scottsville this afternoon and another second would not come as a major surprise.

However, her last two starts have been on the Greyville poly track, the first over 1000m where she was held up for a run and her second over 1400m where she tried to make all the running.

Anton Marcus, who has partnered the filly in both those starts, should by now have a pretty good idea of what his mount is capable of, so back on turf over 1 200m she gets the benefit of the doubt.

Dennis Drier and Duncan Howells are engaged in a tight contest for KZN’s trainers’ championship with Howells one clear of his rival at the time of writing. They both have runners in the race, Drier saddling La Revere and Howells Rainbowinthesky, both in with outstanding chances.

Brett Crawford (Liesl King)

La Revere showed plenty of promise early in her career, winning on debut and following up with a close-up third in Gr3 Debutante.

She was not seen out again until November at Kenilworth where she was a touch disappointing in a Graduation Plate.

This will be her first outing in sixth months so obviously has her problems but comes from a yard that knows how to bring them back racing fit.

Rainbowinthesky, on the other hand, has only missed the money once in six starts down the Scottsville straight and last time out was a narrowly beaten fourth behind Timeous when tried in blinkers for the first time. Racing fit and getting 3kg from La Revere and 4kg from Clifton Sunset may be enough to see her home.

Marcus could be in for a quick double if New Fort continues his good form in the Racing It’s A Rush Handicap over 2400m, in a race that is likely to develop into a tight tactical battle.

On paper, there is absolutely nothing between New Fort and top weight Night Circus, the two having met last time out with New Fort prevailing by less than a length. New Fort has been a changed horse since moving yards and the blinkers coming off and has only been beaten once in four starts for his new stable.

He is a confirmed front runner so just how Marcus plays his hand will be interesting. Anthony Delpech has been aboard Night Circus in his last six outings and his most recent victory came on the poly when handy throughout. Delpech has since employed waiting tactics but just not able to close when it counts.

New Fort is tested over the trip while Night Circus steps up for the first time so the odds do seem to favour the old campaigner.

Sabre Charge was a buy-back at last week’s Super Sale but steps out in the same colours for the first time for Kom Naidoo. He stays the trip well but was comfortably beaten by New Fort last time out. However, he gets 2.5kg relief from apprentice Ashton Arries and that could prove significant.

By Andrew Harrison