M.J. Byleveld returns to the fray at Kenilworth tomorrow after four medically-ordered months on the sidelines, the consequence of old injuries that caused a disc to push into his spinal cord and threaten to leave him paralysed.

Fortunately the enforced rest has worked the oracle and he said yesterday: “A month ago I got the go-ahead from my doctor to start riding work and when I went to him on Monday he gave me a letter to say that everything is clear.”

Byleveld, 37, has six booked rides but will only partner five of them – “I’m still a bit fat so I am not going to make the weight (54.5kg) on Sean Tarry’s Jetorio in race six.”

Asked if there is anything he particularly likes, he singled out Ground Control in the first – “He is a very nice horse who has done some good work and I will be disappointed if he doesn’t run well.”

Vaughan Marshall would like nothing more than to give his stable jockey a winner on his first ride back and the colt has already been backed from 5-2 to 16-10 joint favourite. Byleveld said he had heard the reports about Ibra (also 16-10) being a sharp sort. By Var (like Ground Control and Mister Vargus), the Joey Ramsden runner is the only filly in the race and she cost Brian Finch and his partners R350 000 at the National Yearling Sale. The booking of Anton Marcus looks significant and she gets the vote.

Santa Clara, five lengths-fifth when hampered in the Cape Fillies Guineas, is hard to oppose in the Tab Telebet Handicap, even at a fraction of odds-on. There is little to choose between Brave Tiger and Captain Carlos 35 minutes later and the pair are joint favourites at 33-10.

Captain Carlos is marginally preferred even though the fact that he made a noise in a work riders race last time is a slight concern. Hopefully it was a one-off and not a warning signal.

Hurricane Silva made a strong final furlong challenge when just failing last time and looks another winner for Marcus in race three. Louisa May could be the danger.

The former champion also has good prospects on Northern Spy in the Book Your Seat SunMet Maiden but stable companion Var Express is marginally preferred.

Marcus’s most interesting ride is Mushi Sterek in the Interbet.co.za Handicap. This Australian-bred created a big impression when winning by five lengths on debut and, although the handicappers have put her in high on 84, she may be good enough to defy the ‘first time out of the maidens’ red warning light.

By Michael Clower

Anton Marcus moved to the top of the national log with a treble on the Greyville polytrack yesterday. 

He is now on 98 winners, one ahead of Muzi Yeni, and is riding to a phenomenal strikes rate of 31,82%.

Marcus started off with an easy victory in the first race over 1000m on the Paul Lafferty-trained odds-on shot Buckleberry, a hard-knocking three-year-old gelding by Crusade.

In the third he rode a peach of a race on the Dennis Drier-trained three-year-old Master Of My Fate gelding The Master. He had to get him over from a tricky draw of seven but left something in reserve and pulled away just as he looked likely to be swamped in the straight.

Marcus clinched the treble with another fine ride in the last race over 1000m on the Louis Goosen-trained five-year-old Bernadini gelding Di Mazzio, getting him handy from pole position before producing a strong finish.

Reigning national champion jockey Lyle Hewitson scored a double. He made a belated start to the season due to injury but is making up the leeway rapidly and is now in fourth place on the log on 73 winners. 

Hewitson rode the Sean Tarry-trained Speightstown filly Little Bristol to victory over 1200m and later won easily on the Greg and Karen Anthony-trained Mulllins Bay gelding Prince Charming over 1600m. 

However, the ride of the day belonged to Warren Kennedy who steered the Dennis Bosch-trained Born To Perform to his second win from as many starts.  

Kennedy’s fine hands allow him the quirky colt to do what he wants without tearing away. He once again found a handy position with relative ease from another wide draw in the 1600m handicap and then turned it on well in the straight, despite having to be switched inward from the outside rail. He won going away by 2,5 lengths. He ran off a mere 65 merit rating so it is still too early to get overly excited but the big grey is certainly going the right way and his stakes earnings in just two runs are now R115,000, a pleasing return on a R55,000 purchase by Bosch at the BSA Super Sale last year. He is providing owner R Hurchund with a lot of entertainment.

Bosch scored a double when Keagan de Melo easily won the seventh over 1200m on eight-year-old Jet Master gelding Peter Piper. That race also sealed a quick double for De Melo. He had earlier won on Garth Puller’s four-year-old Oratorio filly Tuulikki, who knocked plenty of tickets out of the exotics in the sixth race over 1400m.

By David Thiselton

Three-times SA Champion trainer Sean Tarry has never been one to dwell on defeat or offer excuses but he gave a factual analysis of Legal Eagle’s defeat in Saturday’s Grade 1 L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate and confirmed Lyle Hewitson would be riding him in the Sun Met.

Legal Eagle’s regular rider Anton Marcus has been declared to ride the Eric Sands-trained Met second favourite Rainbow Bridge.

Tarry said he normally had difficulty saddling Legal Eagle and the horse usually played up in the parade ring too. However, the seven-year-old gelding had been “quiet” in both instances on Saturday.

He said there had been nothing wrong with the way he strode out going down to the start but noticed he had not taken hold of the bit.

He added Legal Eagle had not travelled well at any stage of the race.

He concluded, “So he was not really himself on the day and then ran a flat race.”

The superstar had been attempting to equal Pocket Power’s record of four successive Queen’s Plates. He had gone into the race undefeated in ten attempts at a mile

Tarry continued, “He was a bit quiet the next day, but we have freshened him up and he is well. So it was just an off day on the wrong day, but that’s life.”

Legal Eagle is considered best at a mile but did win the SA Derby as a three-year-old and won the Grade 1 Champions Challenge over 2000m as a four-year-old. He has twice finished runner up in the Met and fourth once and he finished second once in the Champions Challenge.

Tarry raised an interesting point, “I would like to see an analysis on how he has done over 2000m when coming from off the pace and how he has done when up at the front.”

Tarry thus hinted Legal Eagle would come from off the pace in the Met although he added that was just the way he had been thinking at present and it might all change after the draw ceremony.

Tarry had gone into last year’s Met supremely confident, but unfortunately the race just did not pan out well for Legal Eagle. He was caught wide and Marcus was eventually forced to take him up further forward than had been the plan. He then found no extra in the closing stages and finished a disappointing fourth.    

In other Tarry yard news from Saturday’s Kenilworth meeting Safe Harbour has been retired to stud after sustaining a tendon injury in the Grade 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes where she finished eighth. The five-year-old Elusive Fort mare failed to attain bold black type in a 27 race career but will nevertheless be valuable as her three career wins included the R2,5 million Lanzerac Ready To Run Stakes and her five Grade 1-places included runner up finishes in all of the Cape Fillies Guineas, Paddock Stakes and SA Fillies Classic.  

Tarry was delighted by Second Request’s running on fifth in the Paddock Stakes and plans to run this progressive Twice Over filly against the boys in the Grade 1 Cape Derby over 2000m on Met day.

He was also “very happy” with Trip To Heaven’s fifth place finish in a Pinnacle Stakes event over 1000m at Kenilworth on 29 December.

“That should put him spot on for the Cape Flying Championships,” he said. Trip To Heaven has finished second in the last two renewals of the Cape Flying.

Tarry would have preferred to have had Chimichuri Run in the US$500,000 CTS 1200 and Cirillo in the US$500,000 CTS 1600 but might have to run them the other way round due to the draws. Chimichuri Run has drawn two in the CTS 1600 and Cirillo has drawn 28.        

Tarry was looking forward to Met day where he reckoned he would have “s small but good team and it should be fun.”

Tarry also had feature runners on Sunday at Turffontein and had a mixed day.

Last year’s Equus Champion Two-year-old Return Flight ran unplaced in the Grade 3 Three Troikas Stakes over 1400m but Tarry was not unduly disheartened. He said, “It was disappointing and I can’t pinpoint it but she was carrying a 5kg penalty and, running into a headwind over a distance too short, she led in a race which was run a second faster than the colts’ race. Furthermore, all horses up here missed three or four days work due to the weather and she might have been affected more than others as she is a big filly. She was below her best but she did go down exceptionally well and her coat looks great, so I am still upbeat about her prospects.”

In the Grade 3 Tony Ruffel Stakes over 1400m Tarry was pleased with Vontreo’s running on third and the filly Celtic Sea’s fourth place carrying a 2kg Grade 2 penalty.

He mentioned Vontreo’s plan as being the Grade 2 Gauteng Guineas and the Grade 1 SA Classic.

By David Thiselton

Anton Marcus, with a 31% strike rate this season, rides in seven of the nine races at Kenilworth on Saturday and five of the seven have opened up favourite with World Sports Betting.

These include the Joey Ramsden newcomer Ibra in the first, five-length debut winner Mushi Sterek in the 1 200m handicap and the Sean Tarry-trained Mythical Bolt in the last.

The booking of the four-time champion for Rainbow Bridge in the Sun Met has seen the Eric Sands star cut from 9-2 to 4-1 with Betting World. Marcus, incidentally, would like to make it clear that the ride was only confirmed on Monday afternoon.

Tarry, clear favourite for the trainers championship until Justin Snaith’s dual Grade 1 payday last Saturday, now shares the market lead with the current champion at 19-20 with WSB.

By Michael Clower

The Vaal eight race meeting looks to be a good one for the exotics with most of the races having one or two stand out horses.

The first leg of the PA is the highest rated race on the card, a MR 92 Handicap for fillies and mares over 1800m, and only five horses will go to post. Jet Start is a promising sort who won two starts over this trip last season easily. She needed her last start and is drawn in pole which is always an advantage in a small field. Fort Ember has proven class and the small field will suit her as she lacks early pace and always risks being caught wide.She has a 4kg claimer to help her cause but on the downside she has not had an easy campaign lately, having had a very tough race in the G-Bets Summer Cup and then travelling down to Durban to run a close up third in the

Flamboyant Stakes. Those two should be enough for the PA and Bipot, although Cold Cash is in good form, Guns And Roses is talented and had her third run after a layoff and Insignis is proving competitive off her current mark.

In the first leg of the Pick 6 Flapjack has good form over this trip, including a close second to Owlinthetree, who went on to place in a Listed race over this trip on Sunday. Fort Carol is consistent and will give her something to think about over a trip she should enjoy. The Honey Badger was beaten only 1,25 lengths by Flapjack in his penultimate start over 2000m when well drawn and he is now drawn in pole over a step down in trip which he won’t mind. He does tend to get a bit hot, so if able to relax he could spring a surprise and is made the value each/way bet of the day.

In the first leg of the Jackpot over 1800m Midnight In Paris was stepped up from 1000m to 2000m second time out and ran a fine second. It usually takes a horse a run or two to get used to the turn and the step up in trip so she should come on a lot from that race. However, she does have a tough draw to overcome. Ever Fair ran well over this trip last time from a similarly wide draw. Lyle Hewitson stays aboard which is significant. Magic’s First ran a cracker when setting the pace over 2000m last time and from a good draw here should be in the mix with Strydom aboard.

In the fifth race over 2400m Wonderous Climber is chosen as the best bet on the card despite being 3,5 kg under sufferance with Sunshine Silk.He has improved continuously since being sent over staying trips and can do so again from a good draw. He won last time with a bit in hand and looks to be potentially better than his 75 merit rating. Sunshine Silk is drawn in pole and is suited to this trip, but it is never easy against the boys. Come The Day was entered for the Summer Cup so is well regarded and is a galloping sort who should enjoy this trip, so he also has a chance and can be included in the Pick 6 and Jackpot.

In the next race over 2400m Earth Sky is also a progressive stayer and can make it three wins in his last four starts. However, Highlander is also in fine form and should be running on strongly as usual from his good draw. If Earth Sky has a chance then Tapanzee has to be given a shout on the weight turnaround, especially from pole position as he is a quirky sort who needs things to go his way.

In the seventh race over 1000m Dancing Queen has own her last two starts over this distance with consummate ease and looks to be going places,However, Ilha Da Varlette also impressed last time and will give some cheek despite being 2,5kg under sufferance with the first choice. Casual Wear also has ability and with cheek pieces on could surprise so can be included in the Jackpot and Pick 6.

In the last race over 1000m Elbi has dropped to a competitive mark and is the selection to win over a suitable trip despite having to carry topweight. I Aint Trippin, will also go close here as she is an improving sort. Ilha Da Var is knocking hard and recent maiden winners Queen Rachel and Ocean City both have good pace and run off reasonable merit ratings so must all be included.

By David Thiselton