Many think it is an easy game, and it is a case of pushing buttons when it comes to racing but it is far from that!

Trainer Joey Soma’s smart son of Gimmiethegreenlight, Got The Greenlight who lines up for the R5 Million CTS 1600 race on Sun Met day, left his Highveld base on Monday afternoon after two and a half weeks of quarantine at Randjesfontein and arrived safely in the Cape on Tuesday morning at 10:30am.

Soma said “he travelled well and I am as happy as I can be. He is drinking a lot, adapted well and working well.” Soma added that trainers Paul Peter and Lucky Houdalakis also had to go through the same quarantine process with their Cape Town raiders due to a recent African Horse Sickness scare in Gauteng.

Soma mentioned that it was difficult preparing his horse because they are only allowed out of their stables while in quarantine between 10am and 3pm.

Got The Greenlight has improved from his last run which he needed badly after his break from the KZN Champions Season. With luck in running Soma is expecting to be competitive but it is never easy considering the journey undertaken to prepare for this race in the Cape.

“We are expecting a good run. The win would be the cherry on the cake” said Soma.

By Warren Lenferna

Only once in the last ten years has the Queen’s Plate winner gone on take the Met in the same season. The extra two furlongs has often turned out to be a bridge too far – some didn’t see it out while others, notably Legal Eagle, were not as effective over it.

Vardy has been backed down to second favourite for Saturday’s Sun International highlight but, if you are putting your money down, it could be worth bearing in mind that there are doubts about him having the necessary stamina to follow in Futura’s 2015 footsteps.

He is by the European champion sprinter Var, none of whose progeny has won a Grade 1 beyond a mile. Vardy’s dam (by Jet Master) did not race and her Cape Fillies Guineas-winning sisters Ebony Flyer and Captain’s Lover did not win over further than 1 800m. She has produced two winning foals in addition to Vardy – Shallcross who won a humble 2 400m maiden at Fairview (but it took her until she was four to do it) while Eros’s Girl won the 2 000m East Cape Oaks at the Port Elizabeth course.

“Eros’s Girl beat little of note in that race and two of her four wins came over 1 200m,” says pedigree expert Sarah Whitelaw. “On paper I have my doubts about Vardy getting the 2 000m of the Met.”

Nobody knows Var and his progeny better than Pippa Mickleburgh and the Avontuur general manager points out that his daughter Princess Of Light was only beaten three-quarters of a length (by In Writing) in the 2012 Gold Cup when it was a Grade 1.

“Personally I think Vardy will make it on Saturday because the female line is quite stout,” she says. “The way he races will definitely help but 2 000m will be the maximum of his range.”

Trainers tend to be optimistic in such circumstances and Adam Marcus is no exception – “Vardy is a very athletic horse, he has a lot of size to him and he switches off so beautifully that I don’t think going an extra 200m or 400m is going to have much effect.”

Marcus points to Vardy’s two and a quarter-length defeat of One World in last season’s 1 800m Winter Classic (although One World was thought to be feeling the effects of a tough season that day and was promptly put away until this term).  “I thought that was a great performance from Vardy and I don’t see why the 2 000m on Saturday should be an issue.”

Indeed Marcus believes that Craig Zackey’s mount has improved since the L’Ormarins showpiece. “From what I have seen so far he has certainly come on from the race. My norm is to give horses a couple of really easy days after a race but he was jumping out of his skin to such an extent that I had to get him going again.”

The way Vardy is usually ridden, from the back and coming with a sustained run, should help but there will be no specific orders to hold him up. “The horse is versatile – he has won coming from last and from sitting in the box seat – and I will let Craig make the decisions. If Vardy flies out of the gates and Craig finds himself in a handy position, I don’t want him to feel he has to ease the horse out of it.”

Aldo Domeyer will similarly not be tied to orders on 16-1 shot Twist Of Fate – “I am going to leave things to him. The trip should be more suitable than the mile of the Queen’s Plate and the horse has a lot in his favour.”

BLOB The field is down to 13 – the same as last season’s race and jointly the smallest in the last 25 years – following yesterday’s scratching of longshot Roy Had Enough with a tendon injury. 

By Michael Clower

Vaughan Marshall won the Sun Met six years ago with Hill Fifty Four and there are a number of similarities between that horse and the yard’s contender this year, One World.

Marshall said about One World, “I am very happy with him, he is very well, and all we need now is a bit of luck.”

The first similarity with Hill Fifty Four is that he is by Captain Al, although he is a four-year-old colt whereas Hill Fifty Four was a five-year-old gelding. 

The second similarity is that their respective damsires impart stamina. Hill Fifty Four was out of a Sportsworld mare, while One World is out of a Giant’s Causeway mare.

Marshall said, “There must be a slight stamina doubt but he was running on well in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and we will take our chances,”

In One World’s only attempt beyond a mile he finished a 2,25 length second to Vardy in the Grade 3 Winter Classic over 1800m at Kenilworth.

One World’s British-bred dam Aquilonia only raced five times but the distance range was from one-mile-and-two-furlongs to one-mile-and-four-furlongs, suggesting her trainer Roger Charlton believed she was a stayer. A fourth place finish over one- mile-and-two-furlongs at Salisbury was her best effort. In the breeding shed she has produced a horse by Count Dubois called Counterstroke who won over 1800m, although he and his full sister Count To Ten, who was stakes placed over a mile, generally looked to be most comfortable from 1400m to a mile. On the other hand Count To Ten’s first foal, Blow Your Cool, has placed three times in five starts and her placed distance range is 1800m to 2000m despite being by the speedster Warm White Night.

The next similarity with Hill Fifty Four is that One World is drawn wide. 

He is drawn in barrier 12 out of the 13 remaining runners, while Hill Fifty Four’s Met win came from a draw of 15 out of 18.

Hill Fifty Four was admittedly given a ride by Anton Marcus which can genuinely be described as brilliant.

Marshall said about One World’s draw, “It should not matter especially as there are now only 13 runners and I definitely think there will be a good pace.”

The race is now weight-for-age (wfa) whereas in Hill Fifty Four’s day it was wfa plus penalties, so the latter only carried 58kg and received 2kg from the Grade 1 winners. 

However, One World looks to be a genuine Grade 1 weight for age class horse and on pure formlines should be the second favourite instead of the 10/1 fifth favourite (Track and Ball). He has finished second to Vardy three times in succession, over 1800m and then twice over 1600m, and this pair have had Do It Again and Rainbow Bridge beaten twice and Hawwaam once.

However, the public and the bookmakers are still not convinced. They believe the big guns needed it in the Green Point Stakes and they must believe the delayed start affected the result in the LQP.

Vardy and One World will have to do it a third time to be accepted as the best, such is the aura surrounding the big three.

One World has certainly blossomed this season and conformation-wise this big, strong, rangy horse looks the real deal.

Marshall’s long time stable jockey MJ Byleveld has also blossomed in recent seasons, especially in the field of BMT.  He is overdue a win ín one of South Africa big two races, the Vodacom Durban July and the Sun Met, where he has gone close a couple of times, including being first across the line on Wylie Hall in the July of 2014 and a narrow second in the 2013 Met on Hill Fifty Four.  

Marshall named his best runner on the day as Cane Lime And Soda in the CTS 1600. He is drawn two and wears first-time blinkers. 

He also named Joseph Berry (Listed Summer Juvenile Stakes), Mirage (CTS 1200) and Tap O’ Noth (Grade 2 New Turf Carriers Western Cape Stayers) as competitive runners on the day.

By David Thiselton

Brett Crawford is hoping Undercover Agent can run as well as he did in last year’s Sun Met although he rates his best runners on the day as Run Fox Run in the Grade 1 Cape Flying Championship and Front And Centre in the Grade 1 Bidvest Majorca Stakes.

Five-year-old Captain Al entire Undercover Agent features in the card changes for the day as he will be wearing a tongue tie.

Crawford said, “He is all good and seems to have been working better with the tongue tie on. It is a tough task but we have got to try and if he runs the same sort of race as last year we will be very happy.”

Stable jockey Corné Orffer rode him to a courageous 2,20 length fourth last year from draw 12 out of 13 and this year he is drawn six out of 13.

In the Cape Flying Championship Crawford’s Australian-bred four-year-old Foxwedge filly Run Fox Run attempts to keep her unbeaten record. She has won all five of her career starts from 1000m to 1200m comfortably. Her last two runs, on May 25 last year in the Listed Olympic Duel Stakes over 1200m and on December 14 in the Grade 2 WSB Southern Cross Stakes over 1000m, both at Kenilworth, were her first two attempts at black type and she won them by five lengths and 2,25 lengths respectively.

It is now a big step up to weight-for-age Grade 1 company against the boys but the manner of those wins, showing fair  cruising speed before turning it on in the last 400m, has impressed the bookmakers who make her the 2,65/1 joint favourite with Kasimir.

Crawford said, “She is in great form and looks well and has been working well. She has had a great prep and we will now see how good she is.”

He also has Pacific Trader and Bold Respect in the Cape Flying and said, “Both will run well, they always do.”

Front And Centre also features in the card changes for the days as she will be wearing blinkers.

Crawford said, “Ï hope she improves with the blinkers. I do think the mile is her better trip, I have no doubt she is more suited to that distance than the 1800m of the Paddock Stakes last time (when beaten 2,75 lengths into fifth by Queen Supreme).”

Front And Centre, who finished a 1,70 length third to Clouds Unfold last year, is drawn seven with Anton  Marcus up.

Crawford expected good runs from all three of his contenders in the Grade 3 City Of Cape Town Politician Stakes over 1800m, Super Silvano, Late At Night and Parterre.   

He said, “They are all doing well and will run good races.”

Count Jack, who runs in the CTS 1600, was the other of his many runners on the day he mentioned.

He said, “He has been working exceptionally well. It is a tough race but on his work at home he has a place chance.”

By David Thiselton

Warren Kennedy’s early treble at Hollywoodbets Scottsville yesterday had racing historians searching through the archives as he had also won the last three races at the Vaal the previous days, which meant he had ridden the winner of six successive scheduled South African races.

Piere Strydom is the only rider to have ridden the Pick 6 in SA history but oddly enough he did not ride the winner of six successive scheduled races that day because the match race between Divine Act and Brainteaser was run in between two of the legs and he was on the defeated Brainteaser.

Aldo Domeyer rode six winners out of six rides at Kenilworth in January 2017 but they were not in six successive scheduled races.

Jeff Lloyd has ridden seven winners on a day on three occasions in SA and Garth Puller did it once and there have been many occasions of jockeys riding six in a day, but the records will have to be checked to see whether the same jockey has been aboard the winner of six successive scheduled races.

Kennedy started yesterday with a double for his guv’nor Gavin van Zyl. Greenlighttoheaven won the first, a Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1000m by a comfortable 3,75 lengths.

In the next Kennedy kept Miss Marmalade going to just beat the Mike Miller-trained Chanel Allure on the other side of the track by a quarter of a length.

Kennedy completed the treble when keeping The Paul Lafferty-trained Katie’s Treasure going to beat the Dennis Drier-trained first-timer Candyman by three-quarters of a length in the 1200m maiden.

Kennedy made it four later on when the Wayne Badenhorst-trained Mai Tai fulfilled the promise she had always shown by winning the seventh, a MR 76 handicap for filllies and mares over 1000m. The Vercingetorix three-year-old appreciated the step down in trip and has now won twice from six career starts.

Lafferty scored a treble on the day. He also won the fifth over 1750m with Dark Moon Down, ridden by Dennis Schwarz, and the last over 1950m with Rise, ridden by Calvin Habib.

The fourth over 1750m was the highest rated race on the card, a Progress Plate, and was won easily by the improving Robbie and Shannon Hill-trained Twice Over filly Moon In June. 

Andre Nel’s Washington Square won the sixth over 1000m under 4kg claimer Jabu Jacobs.

Lafferty’s fine day saw him closing the gap on Garth Puller on the Hollywoodbets Sizzling Summer Challenge trainers’ table.

He started the day 52 points behind Garth Puller and after collecting 49 points to the latter’s 12 he is now just 15 points behind.

Kennedy started the day nine points behind Anton Marcus on the jockeys’ table but his 80 points compared to Marcus’ 54 saw him moving into a 17 point lead.

By David Thiselton