The National Yearling Sale concluded on Friday with a trio of R2 million plus yearlings, but it was not enough to bolster the falling turnover figure. The aggregate was R107,010,000, a drop of 16%, while the average (R325,258) and the median (R200,000) both decreased by 9%. Top vendor was Varsfontein Stud, achieving R11,565,000 for 18 yearlings , while Form Bloodstock topped the buyer’s list, acquiring 26 yearlings for R19,195,000.  Silvano dominated the sire’s list with 16 yearlings selling for R13,735,000.  “It was a very tough sale, but considering the economic climate you would have to say it was a very fair sale. There was a large spread of buyers and the middle market was strongly supported”, commented Bloodstock SA CEO Kevin Woolard.

Sales Topper Lot 142 (Candiese Marnewick)

The salestopper was Lot 142, a Trippi filly consigned by Wilgerbosdrift Stud from the family of Ilha Da Vitoria (BRZ).  Ilha Da Vitoria is considered one of the great racing fillies and her multiple Graded victories earned her the title of Horse of the Year and Champion Older Female (middle distance) in 2008.   She has only had seven foals to date and any fillies from her or her daughters are considered gold, well that is if they actually come on the market. This year one did.

Entering the ring as Lot 142, a filly named Lara Yara out of Ilha Grande, a Listed-winning daughter of Ilha Da Vitoria, was never going to go cheap. Coming late in the sale, she managed to pack out the auditorium, as a thrilling bidding war ensued between James Bester and Jehan Malherbe of Form Bloodstock.  With the hammer falling at R2.5 million, Malherbe may have emerged rather bloodied from the encounter, but according to him it was well worth it.

“Ilha Da Vitoria is one of the all time greats of South African racing and Trippi fillies are very, very good. She is an outstanding specimen from a great family and I couldn’t be happier that we got her”, he commented.  Mary Slack, owner of Wilgerbosdrift Stud, appeared to have mixed feelings about letting the filly go. “She is spectacularly beautiful; an outstanding filly! I am thrilled by the price though”, she added with a smile.

The top colt on the sale was Lot 389, a Dynasty (SAf) colt out of the Captain Al mare Townsend, consigned by Varsfontein Stud.  Another bidding war ensued, with Malherbe taking on John Freeman this time.  Malherbe is however a seasoned adversary and at R2.2 million the hammer fell in his favour.  “That was hard work”, Malherbe quipped, “but I am happy that I finally got him. He is a beautiful colt, with a lot of quality and you can’t go wrong with a Dynasty colt!”

By Liesl King

“He arrived a hero will he leave a legend?” Commentator Alistair Cohen got it right but it was oh so close for Abashiri in the Gr1 SA Derby final leg of the Triple Crown at Turffontein yesterday. A nose separated hero from legend and owner Adriaan van Vuuren summed it up. “We expected to win more easily but we had to scratch deep in the barrel.”

And Abashiri did just that, Michael Azzie’s runner drawing on his very last reserves to take the crown and the R2 million bonus. Karl Zechner, eyes closed in relief and crossing himself on the walk back to the paddock, would probably freely admit that the occasion got to him and it was the horse that got him out of jail. Trailing with just two behind him as stable companion Scheme Of Things stretched the field at a solid gallop, Abashiri was out of his ground turning for home and looked gone and forgotten.

“I probably pressed the button too early,” he admitted. “But he’s a tricky horse to ride. You keep niggling but when you ask him he hits the front in an instant.”

Abashiri (Liesl King)

So it proved as Abashiri quickened from last to first in a matter of strides at the 600 m mark putting a couple of lengths on the opposition; but then it was an agonising grind to the line. Drawing on his last reserves of stamina and courage, his legs working from memory, Abashiri fought off an equally game and exhausted Rocketball to hold on by the proverbial nostril.

For owners, who four years ago had no connection with the sport, Adriaan and Rika van Vuuren have spent a fortune on horses and victory was fitting reward and achieved in front of a sea of cheering employees decked out in orange and black.

A half-hour later Legal Eagle confirmed his status as the country’s top rated horse with a bloodless victory in the Gr1 Premier’s Champion Challenge, crowning another exceptional day for Sean Tarry whose horses bagged three of the four Grade 1’s on offer.

Beaten only once on his favourite course, Anton Marcus gave Legal Eagle a copybook ride, tracking the pace and then pressing for home at just the right moment. The three-year-old Brazuca made a game effort to go with the champion but came up short in the end with French Navy finding some of the form that saw him win the Daily News 2000 last season, rattling home for second to give Tarry the one-two.

The Vodacom Durban July has eluded Markus Jooste, the country’s leading owner for the past number of years, and he may have to look beyond Legal Eagle for a win this year. “This race was our aim. We are not overly keen on the July but I will speak to Derek (Brugman – Jooste’s racing manager),” Tarry confided.

“Maybe the Champions Cup at the end of the season but for now just a good rest.”

Carry On Alice obviously enjoys the last Saturday in April. Two years back she won the Gr1 SA Nursery for Tarry and last year finished second in the Gr1 Computaform Sprint. Yesterday she set the record straight as she made short work of the Computaform Sprint field. Tracking the early pace, Khumalo released the brake on the 13-20 favourite two furlongs out and she simply smoked home leaving Talktothestars chasing them – it was as simple and as clinical as that.

More complicated was Cloth Of Cloud as she kept her clean sheet, emulating stable companion Carry On Alice’s victory in the Gr1 SA Nursery. She gave her supporters and her rider a few heart-stopping moments as she dug in her toes before the line.

At her previous start Cloth Of Cloud almost unseated Khumalo just after the line but this time he was wise to her antics. Once past long-time leader Riverine and seemingly headed for victory, Cloth Of Cloud jammed on the brakes forcing Khumalo into an ungainly jig to keep her going.

She is obviously a filly of huge talent but keeping a lid on her temperament may prove more of a challenge for Tarry and Khumalo.

By Andrew Harrison

Chevauchee makes her long-awaited reappearance in the Racing.It’s A Rush Conditions Plate at Kenilworth tomorrow.

This Australian-bred is held in such high regard that she has started hot favourite on all her three starts – and in the second of them she was actually odds-on to beat Bela-Bela. She opened 5-2 equal favourite with World Sports Betting yesterday but this is her first run since Ridgemont split with Joey Ramsden nearly five months ago.

Brett Crawford has brought her along patiently but the 1 000m could be a big problem because she is bred to need at least twice that far. “We were looking for a 1 200m but there wasn’t a suitable race available,” said Ridgemont manager Craig Carey yesterday.

Brett Crawford (Liesl King)

“We are very excited about her and, although we couldn’t gallop her because there was no grass, she has been going very nicely and I expect her to run well.”

The best horse at the weights is 8-1 shot Fear Not who has 3kg in hand (worth just over two lengths at this trip) on official ratings but she also needs further and this is her first run since her throat operation.

“She has shown quite a lot of natural speed and she has responded well since the op,” said Adam Marcus. “This is a come-on run for her and she will be coming from off the pace. Hopefully she will run a cracker.”

The two with no distance or fitness problems that stand out the most are Hoist The Mast (5-2) and Varumba who is a big price at 10-1. Both have a bit to find at the weights but their stables are in form and the Andre Nel runner possibly has more scope for improvement.

Five of the other seven races are maidens but winner-finding will not be easy because there are no stand-outs. Indeed A New Dawn and William Longsword both went into punters’ notebooks after potential-packed debuts and it is almost impossible to choose between them in the first. MJ Byleveld’s mount gets the nod at 22-10 as the money came for him first time but Ramsden thinks a lot of his colt who opened favourite at 12-10.

Moonsaballoon (33-10) looks marginally best in race two and it may be worth taking a chance with the Vaughan Marshall-trained Hernando’s Promise at the same price 35 minutes later. He should be receiving 5.5kg more according to the weight-for-age scale and this means he needs to be five lengths better than the three-year-olds. But he could easily be because they have not been good enough to win even after a further 12 months.

Crawford’s decision to fit Baqueira with blinkers could prove a winner in race four where fellow 5-2 joint favourite Flying Monarch looks the danger despite the presence of two Snaith two-year-olds.

By Michael Clower

Anticipation will reach fever pitch at Turffontein tomorrow when Abashiri lines up for the Gr 1 A Derby in his bid to land the Triple Crown.

There are four Gr 1s in total to look forward to, including the R4 million Premier’s Champion Challenge over 2000m, as well as five Gr 2s, so it is going to be another Champions Day of high drama.

Abashiri (Nkosi Hlophe)

Abashiri looks every inch a champion and should have no problem staying the 2450m trip on both pedigree and running style. A wide draw is a concern but he doesn’t over race and can afford to be dropped out due to his blistering turn of foot. He should pick them off one by one in the straight.

The Mike de Kock-trained Jubilee Line strikes as a Derby type who should be staying on strongly.

Samurai Blade showed his class when staying on for third in the SA Classic and gave the impression he would handle this trip.

Kinaan is a progressive sort who has proved he stays the trip, although he has a lot to do at the weights.

Rocketball has some class but will have to improve on his SA Classic run. He has a chance of staying the trip considering he is from the family of facile Derby winner Irish Flame.

Milla’s World will be improving, being by Ideal World, and will likely relish the trip.

Bankable Teddy impressed last time when romping home in the Listed Derby Trial over 2000m and he could be the dark horse.

The selection is Abashiri to beat Jubilee Line with Samurai Blade, Milla’s World and Bankable Teddy next best.

Inara (Liesl King)

In the Premier’s Champions Challenge Inara versus Legal Eagle is “a clash of the century” epic and one for the purists to savour. Inara is taking on the boys for the first-time and if the travel and altitude don’t affect her she will be up to it. On a strict form line through Smart Call, Inara has the beating of Legal Eagle. French Navy loves the course and distance and at best his finishing effort will take him close, but his two below par build up runs create a question mark. Captain America has become more settled since gelding and should give another honest account of himself, although he is one who would prefer soft ground. Both Brazuca and Judicial’s sustained finishing runs make them ideally suited to the course and distance. Stonehenge should ensure a good pace, having proved last time riders can’t afford to ignore him out in front.

The WSB Computaform Sprint will be an exciting contest. Carry On Alice can go one better than last year and land her third Gr 1. However Trip Tease will make it tough for her, especially if there is a draw bias like last year in which high numbers were favourable. Barbosa can be relied on to produce a classy performance every time he steps on to the racecourse. Tar Heel is the dark horse as he is packed with speed and hopefully for his connections horses can win from anywhere as he has a low draw. The same applies to recent Scottsville 1000m record breaker Muscatt, whose high cruising speed and ability to find another gear will make him dangerous. Talktothestars can never be underestimated and Moofeed is capable of a strong finishing run so could be a surprise place getter if putting his poor last run behind him.

Sean Tarry probably has a record number of winning two-year-old fillies this season and has a good chance of landing both the Gr 1 SA Nursery and the Gr 2 SA Fillies Nursery.

Cloth Of Cloud is probably the best of his young fillies and will try and repeat Carry On Alice’s feat of beating the boys in the SA Nursery. She is temperamental, which is the only downside. Janoobi would prefer further in time, but his class could carry him close. Approval Mode had to give 2kg to Janoobi last time and could get closer.

In The Fillies Nursery unbeaten Exquisite Touch won unextended over 1000m last time and looks hard to beat. Fursa is improving and could get closer to Exquisite Touch this time. Myfunnyvalentine won easily on debut despite ducking in the closing stages and has a chance.

Legal Eagle (JC Photos)

The Gr 2 SA Oaks could see a win for Peggy Jay, who has beaten older horses in her last three starts and is proven over the course and distance. There is not much between her and Witchcraft on form and Tarry has always said the latter is his Oaks horse. Zafira should finish on top of Peggy Jay on course and distance form. Persian Rug should relish the course and distance being a giant daughter of Ideal World. Princess Varunya will relish the trip. Juxtapose SA Fillies Classic win from off the pace suggested she would enjoy this trip. Estimation enjoyed a change to hold up tactics last time and is out of a daughter of Sadler’s Wells so should not be underestimated.

The big galloping type Fortune Fella proved himself a decent stayer last time and could beat Cool Chardonnay and Storm Warning in the Gold Bowl.

Pennington Sands is seen at her best in fast ground and is course and distance in the Gerald Rosenberg Stakes over 2000m where she could be a surprise winner ahead of the ideally course and distance suited The Centenary and the classy and consistent Trophy Wife.

The Gr 2 Camellia Stakes could see Lazer Star in the winner’s box again from Kwinta, although the dark horse is Joan Ranger who should enjoy being brought back to a sprint trip again.

By David Thiselton