INDEPENDENT ON SATURDAY DRILL HALL STAKES (Grade 2)
R500 000 – 1400m 

TRIP OF FORTUNE

Trainer: Candice Bass-Robinson

Jockey: Aldo Domeyer

Winner: TRIP OF FORTUNE BRED BY: Drakenstein Stud (Nom: Mrs G A Rupert) OWNED: Drakenstein Stud (Nom: Mrs G A Rupert)

    

WORLD SPORTS BETTING FILLIES GUINEAS (Grade 2)
R 450 000 – 1600m
  

PEACH DAIQUIRI

Trainer: Alec Laird    

Jockey: Luyolo Mxothwa    

Winner: PEACH DAIQUIRI

BRED BY: Maine Chance Farms (Pty) Ltd

OWNED: The Playgate SA ( Nom: Mr Furkhat Ibragimov)

WORLD SPORTS BETTING GUINEAS (Grade 2) – R500 000 1600m

CHARLES DICKENS

Trainer: Candice Bass-Robinson 

Jockey: Aldo Domeyer

Winner: CHARLES DICKENS

BRED BY: Drakenstein Stud (Nom: Mrs G A Rupert)

OWNED: Drakenstein Stud (Nom: Mrs G A Rupert) 

See It Again Masters the favourite

David Thiselton

See It Again did everything but join his three-parts brother Do It Again as a winner of the Grade 2 WSB Guineas at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday when hampered in the straight before running on for an eye-catching two length second.

The interference might not have altered the overall result because the Candice Bass-Robinson-trained superstar Charles Dickens, who fittingly won the race on the day Charles III was officially crowned King, was not hard ridden to win.

However, See It Again mastered the ruling Hollywoodbets Durban July favourite Cousin Casey and has now replaced him at the top of the betting boards as the 6/1 favourite.

According to the stipendiary steward report See It Again did not suffer any interference at all.

However, if watching the head on replay and looking at the mowed lines it is clear Dave The King maintains a more or less straight path on his inside, but does  shift outward very slightly, while Cousin Casey on See It Again’s outside shifts in about a horse width.

The gap thus closes on See It Again.

However, despite having to ease slightly and switch around Cousin Casey he then shows a tremendous turn of foot to beat Dave The King by 0,60 lengths for second and he beats Cousin Casey by 0,90 lengths.

He was closing rapidly on Charles Dickens but Aldo Domeyer on the winner is looking around at this stage checking for dangers.

The leader in the race for Equus Horse Of The Year honours before the weekend was the middle distance Highveld horse Puerto Manzano, who won both the Grade 1 Betway Summer Cup and the Grade 1 WSB Premier’s Champion Challenge, but he is palpably not suited to Hollywoodbets Greyville as he takes a long time to build up to top gear and he is out at 20/1 for the July.

Charles Dickens’s stablemate Trip Of Fortune might replace Puerto Manzano at the top of the Equus Awards points board anyway because he was in second place on the last table, eleven points behind Puerto Manzano, and he came out and won the Grade 2 IOS Drill Halls Stakes at Saturday’s SA Champions Season opening meeting, also under Domeyer.

This is Trip To Fortune’s fourth Graded win of the season, which includes a Grade 3, two Grade 2s and a Grade 1.

Domeyer had him just ahead of mid pack from draw eight and made up ground rounding the turn into the straight. 

The Trippi four-year-old gelding then shows his usual good turn of foot and resolute finish to secure a halcyon day for the Bass-Robinson yard.

Al Muthana and Gimme A Prince ran on from the back and looked dangerous with their big strides. Al Muthana had to switch inward but it would unlikely have changed the result, as Trip Of Fortune held off Gimme A Prince to win by 0,75 lengths with Al Muthana beaten 0,90. Desert Miracle stayed on well for fourth ahead of Bingwa.

In the Grade 2 WSB Fillies Guineas the Alec Laird-trained Peach Dacquiri was given a fine ride by Luyolo Mxothwa, coming from a handy position and producing a sustained run down the inside when given her head at the 300m mark.

However, it had to be said the 0,60 length runner up Saartjie was desperately unlucky.

She was badly hampered shortly after turning for home as she attempts to make a run to the outside of Lady Of Power, who was angling out slightly on the same line as the false rail. Saartjie is squeezed out as Hold My Hand, who came wide into the straight right around her, then decides to make a beeline for the finish line. Saartjie faltered when trying to avoid running into Lady Of Power while at the same time being hampered by Hold My Hand on her outside and less fortunate circumstances could have been brought down. 

Saartjie is forced to switch outward and hampers Shantastic in the process because Golden Hostess is running on the latter’s outside.

She then finds Hold My Hand in front of her hanging outward and thereafter is carried in on Hold My Hand’s inside due to Golden Hostess hanging inward on the very outside. 

The upshot of this melee is that there should be a meeting between jockeys and stipendiary stewards about fair racing lines coming off the false rail. 

Is a jockey entitled to follow the line of the false rail, or must he or she straighten immediately and is a jockey who is coming from behind following the line of the false rail then entitled to take a straight line for the finish line even if those in front are following the line of the false rail.

There was an objection in this race as Hold My Hand, who was hanging outward, shifted out suddenly when Grant van NIekerk dropped his rein, hampering Golden Hostess, but it was overruled because Hold My Hand still beat the latter despite being carried inward.