The Mike de Kock yard are happy with their two L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate contenders Soqrat and Buffalo Bill Cody and also with their Grade 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes runner Cascapedia.

The four-year-old Irish-bred Buffalo Bill Cody receives a half-a-kilogram Northern Hemisphere allowance and is improving consistently, while Soqrat will attempt to become only the second three-year-old since 1973 to win the Queen’s Plate.

Mathew de Kock said, “It is a big test for them but they are up to it.”

Soqrat showed last time when winning the Grade 1 Cape Guineas he is course and distance suited and has all the credentials of a great racehorse,including early pace, a relaxed temperament and a superb turn of foot.

However, he is out at 7/1 with World Sports Betting while Buffalo Bill Cody is a 9/2 shot.

The latter has won five of six career starts and in three runs over a mile has put a combined margin of 12,2 lengths between himself and the opposition. He is unexposed but could be anything.

Soqrat has a plum draw of three and regular pilot Randall Simons is up. 

Buffalo Bill Cody has a tough draw of ten and Gavin Lerena remains aboard having taken over from Simons last time.

Buffalo Bill Cody and Cascapedia travelled down from Cape Town on the Thursday two weeks ago and the journey went well.

The big Irish-bred mare had a tough race in the G-Bets Summer Cup where she finished a narrow 0,8 length third giving 2,5kg to the winner Tilbury Fort and 2kg to the runner up Dawn Assault.

However, the yard have freshened her up and Matthew said she was a happy horse at present.

He also believes she will appreciate the step down to 1800m.

“2000m stretches her,” he said.

Cascapedia has never raced in Grade 1 weight for age company and is up against the like of Equus Horse Of The Year Oh Susanna.

However, she is relatively unexposed having won six of ten career starts.

She jumps from a tricky draw of eight with Lerena up.

By David Thiselton

Rainbow Bridge is going to have to find an extra two lengths if he is to justify his position at the head of the market on Saturday. The other three Green Point principals shouldered a 2kg Grade 1 penalty last time and there is no such concession in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate.

However it’s easy to see where Bernard Fayd’Herbe’s mount could get it from because he burned up valuable energy fighting for his head four weeks ago and the pace seems sure to be a lot stronger this time.

“I fully expected him to be right there in the Green Point -there was never any doubt in my mind that his 110 rating was false,” recalls Eric Sands. “But the race didn’t go according to plan. It was a small field and we never got the cover we were hoping for. He is not a puller normally. If we are working him at home, or bringing him to gallops, we put him in behind another horse and he drops the bit.

“It is only in races when he doesn’t get cover that he pulls. Two of his races have been like that – the Winter Classic and the Green Point, and in the latter we finished with Grade 1 winners all around us. He is no tearaway, just a very competitive horse. He would certainly be better off with a fast pace. He wouldn’t tug so much and it would give him a bit more time to get a breather.”

The fast pace is widely expected to come from stable companion Amazing Strike, and at the owner’s request rather than the trainer’s.“This is his last race and Jessica Slack said: ‘Let’s have a bit of fun and put him in the Queen’s Plate.’”

Nothing said about making the running, not so far anyway, but the owner stands Ideal World (sire of Amazing Strike as well as Rainbow Bridge) and victory for either would be a major boost for the stallion. You can get 80-1 about Amazing Strike pulling it off so his role is pretty obvious. He is basically a 1200-1400m horse but his new trainer has few doubts about him lasting the mile – “He won his 1400s going away, he is a seven-year-old and there is his sire.” Ideal World won over 2500m and he is the sire of Met winner Smart Call.

Sands, now 62, has been training for over 35 years. He has a string of Grade 1 winners to show for it including two Cape Flying Championships and three Mercury Sprints with Flobayou, the Champion Stakes and the Paddock Stakes – but not many of his horses got as worked up before their races as Rainbow Bridge does.

How is he going to be on Saturday when he sees a crowd far bigger than he has ever come across before? “I am not going to tell him how many people will be there.” Sands’ one-liners are delivered with such a straight face that it takes a second or two before you realise he is joking.

But will he take a leaf out of Sean Tarry’s Legal Eagle book and put a jockey up in the parade ring to keep the horse calm? Sands considers the question carefully before answering. “I don’t really know but last time he settled down in the parade ring. He was more on his toes when arrived at the course. There was an accident on the highway that day and as a result he spent 25 minutes more in the float than he should have done.”

So will he win on Saturday? The answer is implied rather than spelt out – “He is pretty fit and he has done well since the Green Point. I would say that he is probably now at his peak.”

By Michael Clower

When Brett Crawford won the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate four years ago with 6-1 shot Futura the general opinion was that he was lucky. The pace was funereal and odds-on Legislate finished last with his lungs found to be full of mucus. It was not until the Met three weeks later that horse and trainer got the credit they deserved.

Undercover Agent on Saturday is a different story. The second of the Green Point four, he goes into the race acknowledged as a strong contender with his trainer fancying his chances.

Crawford said: “He has improved this season – he is a lot stronger and more mature mentally. There was virtually nothing in it between the first four last time and it’s going to be a question of who has come on the most. I know Undercover Agent has come on and he has done a really good gallop since.”

There is another reason for the trainer’s confidence.Undercover Agent made much of the running four weeks ago and this time it looks as if he won’t have to. “A horse like him needs to use himself so we had to do what we did – we couldn’t wait for the others to go and then turn it into a sprint. Hopefully we will get a genuine pace this time and that will suit my horse.”

What of the opposition? Who does he fear most? “You have to respect the other three in the Green Point finish – any one of them could turn it around. I don’t know how strong the three-year-old colts are this season but the horse coming down from Jo’burg (Buffalo Bill Cody) won exceptionally well at Turffontein. I know he is still quite a few pounds shy on ratings but that doesn’t mean he can’t make the improvement.”

By Michael Clower

It would appear Amazing Strike has been put into “the race of the century”, Saturday’s Grade 1 L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate, as a pacemaker although trainer Eric Sands was non-committal on this question.

Sands’ stalwart four-year-old Rainbow Bridge over-raced for a few strides when caught without cover in the slow run Grade 2 Green Point Stakes last time yet still managed to fly at the finish to beaten a long-head into fourth. He now has to give 2kg to the trio who beat him, Legal Eagle, Undercover Agent and Do It Again, but he has been priced up as the joint favourite with Legal Eagle, which implies bookmakers believe in a true run race he will perform 2kg better.

Amazing Strike’s presence might ensure a true run race as he has the speed to compete with the best sprinters and has won four times from 1400-1450m.

However, Sands said about Amazing Strike, “It will probably be his last run and he is there for a bit of fun. He is by Ideal World (a stamina influence) and has won some of his 1400m races going away so there is no reason he should not stay 1600m. A horse should be given every opportunity and we have him ready for the day. He is drawn in two so will be up there. But there are going to be a lot of horses trying to get into that box seat.”

It will be his first run for the Sands yard.

He is owned by Mauritzfontein Stud, who are the breeders of Rainbow Bridge. Furthermore, Mauritzfontein joint-owner Mary Slack has Buffalo Bill Cody in the race and he will also appreciate a good pace.

Meanwhile, Rainbow Bridge has been doing very well.
Sands said, ““He is just as well as he was last time, he is fit and hopefully there is a decent pace this time.”

He has done his preparation at Sands’ Milnerton base.

Sands did send Amazing Strike to the course for a gallop. He likely needed one as he finished downfield in the Cape Merchants, his fist run of the season and his last outing for former trainer Alec Laird.

By David Thiselton

The Paul Peter yard will discuss whether to send Lebelo Sprint winner Rebel’s Champ down for the Grade 1 Betting World Cape Flying Championship this week.

Meanwhile, Duncan Howells has nominated his crack three-year-old Thanksgiving for the Grade 1 Cape Derby and Fiorella for the Grade 1 Majorca Stakes on Sun Met day.

Peter said Rebel’s Champ prefers a little sting out of the ground, whereas the going at this time in Cape Town is firm so the decision to send him down will not be taken lightly.

The Rebel King four-year-old gelding, owned by the Hyperpaint Syndicate, cost just R10,000 at the sales where he was selected by Peter.

He recalled, “He looked like a little teddy bear with a long winter coat. But I looked through the coat and he was very immature. He has a lovely action and a lovely temperament and gets better all the time. He is very strong, he is stocky and thick set with a strong hindquarter and lovely shoulder, he has the perfect build for a sprinter. He has had his quirks which we have worked on.”

Indeed, as one stage he appeared to prefer running in isolation.
Peter confirmed, “Yes he was a bit claustrophobic but as he gets older it does not worry him so much and the blinkers have helped a lot.”

Howells’ Dynsaty colt Thanksgiving impressed when second in the Grade 2 Dingaans and followed up with a classy win over 1600m at Greyville last week.

He said, “He won’t have a problem with the distance. He and Fiorella will travel down ten days before to give me time to work on them down there. He is not difficult to train and is pretty fit.”

Howells had intended to run Fiorella in the Grade 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes this Saturday but had to shelve that plan.

He said, “She ran a bit of a flat race in Johannesburg last time and took the race hard.”

By David Thiselton