Author Archives: Nikita
FINAL FIELD: POST MERCHANTS
Emotional win for Kannemeyer
The unstoppable combination of Dean Kannemeyer, Anthony Delpech and Khaya Stables added a Gr 1 to their recent feats when landing the City Of Pietermaritzburg Sprint at Scottsville on Saturday with Real Princess and Kannemeyer described it as an emotional win.
Real Princess (Nkosi Hlophe)
He said later, “I had always said to Lady Christine Laidlaw and Jehan Malherbe this filly WILL get the Gr 1. She had been rolled a few times earlier in her career and I felt she would be better as a four-year-old, she is a big filly and has matured and found her strength. By the end of last season I didn’t quite know what her distance was as she is bred to go 2000m, but she’s a speed horse and has a helluva turn of foot. She ran Carry On Alice to three-quarters of a length over 1000m at Kenilworth, so I thought she could have a big chance today. She loves Scottsville and you have to ride her with confidence and Anthony rode her confidently, because there was always a gap on the outside but he waited until the last 300m of the race and won going away. She has tremendous substance, a deep girth, a beautiful quarter, she’s one of the nicest specimen fillies I’ve ever seen. Lady Laidlaw had always wanted to buy a filly and Jehan and I told her, after viewing Real Princess on the farm before the sale, if you want to see a filly just come with us and have a look at this one.”
The Klawervlei Stud-bred Trippi filly’s sales tag, a staggering R2,7 million, confirmed those sentiments, but she has now proven worth it.
It was Delpech’s sixth Graded success of the SA Champions Season and three of them have been for Kannemeyer and Khaya Stables.
By David Thiselton
WATCH REAL PRINCESS WIN THE 2016 CITY OF PIETERMARITZBURG FILLIES SPRINT
WATCH THE SECRET IS OUT WIN THE 2016 ALLAN ROBERTSON CHAMPIONSHIP
WATCH ALWAYS IN CHARGE WIN THE 2016 TSOGO SUN GOLD MEDALLION
WATCH TALKTOTHESTARS WIN THE 2016 TSOGO SUN SPRINT
Princess with a score to settle
Glen Kotzen’s classy three-year-old Captain Al filly Princess Royal was a touch unlucky in last year’s Gr 1 Allan Robertson Championship and could possibly make amends in the Gr 1 City Of Pietermaritzburg Fillies Sprint over 1200m at Scottsville on Saturday, where she is drawn in barrier one with regular pilot Anthony Andrews up.
Kotzen also runs the classy Silvan Star on the day, whose intended big race season is probably over due to some hiccups, but they are now getting her back on track.
Princess Royal (Liesl King)
Carry On Alice is the obvious horse to beat, but Kotzen pointed out Princess Royal had beaten her (by 1,6 lengths) when winning the Gr 2 Sceptre Stakes over 1200m on January 16.
He added, “I don’t know if Carry On Alice was at her best that day, but if we beat her once we can do it again.”
The weights will make it tougher for Princess Royal this time, because Carry On Alice was carrying a 2kg Gr 1 penalty in the Sceptre, whereas Saturday’s event is a pure weight for age contest.
Kotzen continued, “Princess Royal ran two weeks after arriving at Summerveld (finishing a 3,05 length fifth in the Gr 3 Ponsettia Stakes over Saturday’s course and distance) and she just needed that run. She has been working exceptionally well and has come on a heck of a lot.”
Princess Royal, who is by Captain Al, is a half-sister to the Kotzen-trained champion Princess Victoria, who won the Allan Robertson in 2011.
She is known to have a less than ideal temperament, but Kotzen said her quirkiness had been worked on and she had “without a doubt” improved in that regard.
Everything went “pear shaped” for Silvan Star, upon arrival at Summerveld for her SA Champions Season campaign, including attaining a hoof abscess.
She also has another wide draw to contend with in the fourth race over 1600m, but Kotzen, who rates her highly, said, “She galloped on the grass the other day and wasn’t blowing, so doesn’t take a lot of work. But, she might be a big ring rusty. She might just need it, but I think she will still definitely finish in the first three.”
This filly is a three-parts sister to Vodacom Durban July winner Bold Silvano, being by Silvano out of a half-sister to the latter, but she does face a decent field in tomorrow’s MR 84 Handicap for fillies and mares.
By David Thiselton
Bass stable wary of Alice
Maestro trainer Mike Bass has three runners in the Gr 1s at Scottsville’s Festival Of Speed meeting on Saturday and they are all capable of earning cheques.
Fly By Night (Liesl King)
Assistant trainer Robert Fayd’Herbe said, “Ernie is doing okay, he has a low weight and we’re taking our chances. This is his best trip. Lanner Facon is versatile, but 1200-1400m is probably her best range and she will be running on. Fly By Night always runs well in this race and we’re hoping she has one more in her. Both of the mares are doing well, but everyone’s running for second in that race behind Carry On Alice.”
Elusive Fort three-year-old gelding Ernie has scraped into the handicap in the Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint with the minimum weight of 52kg. He is 3,5kg better off with Captain Alfredo for a 4,75 length defeat in the In Full Flight Handicap over 1100m at Scottsville, which was run on May 1, so will have his work cut out to reverse the form. However, that race was run in officially “very soft” going, so the margins might have been exaggerated, and this is also Ernie’s third run after a layoff. He is drawn six with Grant van Niekerk up.
Five-year-old Trippi mare Lanner Falcon has blossomed into a consistent sort and off 107 is the second highest merit rated runner in the weight for age City Of Pietermaritzburg Fillies Sprint, although that is still seven points lower than Carry On Alice’s rating. The athletic chestnut showed her class over this trip when beating the boys in the Gr 2 Khaya Stables Diadem Stakes at Kenilworth on December 27.
Six-year-old Jet Master mare Fly By Night finished a 1,5 length second in the Diadem and is now 2kg better off with Lanner Falcon, so could get closer on paper if reproducing that run. A further plus is her excellent record in the City Of Pietermaritzburg Fillies Sprint (formerly known as the SA Fillies Sprint), having been touched off by the brilliant Via Africa two years ago and then finishing a 1,8 length third behind two high class sprinters in Carry On Alice and Alboran Sea last year. However, she has become unpredictable and has to make up 5,8 lengths on Lanner Falcon from their recent meeting in the Gr 3 Poinsettia over the City Of Pietermaritzburg course and distance.
Lanner Falcon is drawn two with stable jockey Van Niekerk up and Fly By Night is drawn ten with MJ Byleveld aboard.
By David Thiselton
Drier to defend crown
Maestro Summerveld trainer Dennis Drier has an enviable record in the Scottsville Festival Of Speed meeting Gr 1 events and, apart from winning five of the last six renewals of the Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion, his yard will also be defending the Tsogo Sun Sprint crown.
Barbosa (Nkosi Hlophe)
Drier, like all great trainers, pays acute attention to detail and expects high standards from his staff and stable jockeys, so his Gr 1 contestants will invariably be tuned to the minute.
He said he did not have a preference between Barbosa and Guiness in the Tsogo Sun Sprint and added both had been “doing well.” Seventh Plain, on the other hand, had suffered a setback which had forced his comeback from a layoff to be put back a couple of weeks.
On May 22 he ran below his best in a Pinnacle event over 1000m at Scottsville, finishing 4,05 lengths back, but he was doing some eye-catching late work under a sympathetic ride. He should do a lot better on Saturday and, as a brilliant winner over course and distance in last year’s Gold Medallion, can’t be discounted despite the less than ideal preparation.
Assistant trainer Stuart Ferrie believes Barbosa is “better than he has ever been”. This six-year-old Captain Al gelding has certainly blossomed and, having remained on a merit rating of 108 after his excellent third in the Gr 1 weight for age Computaform Sprint, he must be a big runner. Former Gold Medallion winner Guiness has to be a runner too having scraped into the handicap with bottom weight of 52kg.
Stable jockey Sean Veale is aboard Barbosa from draw 10, while Seventh Plain has Aldo Domeyer aboard from draw 15 and Guiness is drawn 17 with Callan Murray up.
Seventh Plain (Nkosi Hlophe)
Drier said about unbeaten Gold Medallion hopeful Horse Guards, “He is doing nicely and this will be a nice test for him.”
Drier said it was hard to compare this Horse Chestnut colt to the yard’s previous Gold Medallion winners.
Punters and pundits always look out for Drier’s Gold Medallion candidates in the early part of the year and a valid contender seemed a long time in coming this time around. However, Horse Guards’ debut, a five length romp on the Greyville poly over 1000m on April 29, was actually not as close up to the Gold Medallion as Captain Of All’s debut in 2013.
Horse Guards ran over the Gold Medallion course and distance on May 22 in his second start and, after showing plenty of pace, pulled away to win impressively by 2,25 lengths.
This year’s Gold Medallion renewal has been made weaker by the scratching of the impressive Red Chesnut Road, but there are still some exciting prospects involved, such as Oomph, Always In Charge and Rivarine. However, few would bet against Drier making it six out of seven and seven in total, having also won it way back in 1990 with Spook And Diesel.
By David Thiselton
