Arianos Shadow confined to sprints so far in her career, takes a mighty step up when she lines up in the KZN Fillies Guineas Trial at Greyville on Sunday. Not only does she jump to a ‘mile’ for the first time, but she is also up against some useful opposition already tested over the trip.

That said, she is rated 5kg better than anything in the opposition and just that fact may be enough to see her home but more encouraging is that but Yogas Govender is confident of her chances.

“She won’t have any trouble with the trip. If you watched her last race you will see that she was off the bit a long way out but was running on. She is spot on and I will be disappointed if she does not finish in the first two,” he said. Govender has a smart filly on his hands and judged on pedigree and her trainer’s comments the extended trip should be well within her compass.

Arianos Shadow (Candiese Marnewick)

Arianos Shadow won the Sentinel Stakes second time out back in April making all the running. Rider Richard Fourie was impressed with his mount. “She’s a nice filly and needs further. The only thing to worry about is her temperament. You just have to keep her quiet and happy.”

After a change of stable, she was off the track until the end of July where she contested Gr2 The Debutante, finishing second to the smart Temple Graffin, in her first outing for Govender.

She made her seasonal debut in a 1200m sprint at Greyville where she was well supported in the market. The race was run at a cracking gallop and Arianos Shadow showed all the signs of ring rust as she looked to hang in under pressure but she was running on nicely suggesting that Sunday’s trip will be right up her street.

The scrap for the shallow end of the purse is likely to be a close one. Sean Tarry is two-handed, both having won over the trip, but recent maiden winner Generous Lady looks likely to be the biggest improver amongst the opposition. Paul Lafferty’s filly took three runs to get off the mark but when she did it was a smart victory over 1400m at Scottsville. Drawn on Woodhouse Road, she put daylight between herself and second-placed Cape Bluebell.

The latter has since franked that form in another competitive maiden which augurs well for Generous Lady’s chances.

Tarry was quick to realise the talents of current National Champion jockey and still apprentice Lyle Hewitson and was key to Hewitson’s championship aspirations. Similarly, young Luke Ferraris has fast made a name for himself as an apprentice with a big future and the pair will be aboard the two Tarry runners. As senior partner as it were, Hewitson’s mount Sweet Mary Lou could be the pick as she cantered home in her first attempt at 1600m on the Greyville poly. If there is a concern it may be that both her wins have been in the synthetic surface while stable companion Second Request has won on the Scottsville turf. Ferraris was aboard both fillies in their recent victories.

Frank Robinson was not afraid to pit Roy’s Riviera against the best around during Champions Season and she steps out for the first time in two months in a Pinnacle Stakes, fourth race on the card.

The Australian-bred was far from disgraced in any of her Champions Season races, having finished just over two lengths back to Fiorella in the Fillies Guineas and never further back than four lengths to the likes of Oh Suzanna (Gr 1 Woolavington) African Night Sky (Gr3 Cup Trial), Redberry Lane (Gr1 Garden Province) and rounded off last season beaten under e length by Miyabi Gold.

She jumps straight into an 1800m contest which suggests that Robinson has her racing fit.

Of the opposition, Peter Muscutt saddles Parabola for Brett Crawford, and last season’s Scarlet Lady winner has a warm-up under her girth and will be a threat.

The interesting runner here is High Altar. She has disposed of everything Duncan Howells has pitted her against in her last four starts with ease but takes a big jump in class. She has obviously been a later maturing mare and with only 52kg to shoulder and in receipt of 9.5kg from Roy’s Riviera, she could extend her winning streak to five on the bounce.

By Andrew Harrison

Trainer David Ferraris hit a landmark in race three, the Class 4 Dianthus Handicap (1650m) at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. Ultimate Dream stormed home under Teetan to give the South African handler his 400th Hong Kong victory.

David Ferraris & Karis Teetan (HKJC)

Ferraris, 55, arrived in Hong Kong ahead of the 2002/03 season and is best known in these parts as the man behind champion galloper Vengeance Of Rain. Tonight’s win was his third this season, all of which have been achieved at the city track.

“Every winner is something to celebrate – it’s not easy in this place – so you just enjoy these wins when they come. I suppose it’s come at a good time,” he said.

“Those of us who train at Olympic Stables need support. There’s this rumour, this mindset, about the stables being no good, but you don’t get better facilities than that. The last two seasons have shown that I’m happy to work there and I wouldn’t move back to the old stables if you paid me to.”

Ferraris has 41 horses in his yard at present with a further 10 imports in quarantine. “We’re getting there slowly,” he added.

Teetan continued his pursuit of Purton in the jockeys’ standings. The Mauritian doubled up aboard the Tony Cruz-trained Blitzing in race five to end the night on 13 wins to Purton’s 16.

Chris So, meanwhile, put the saddle on Lunar Zephyr in race four and past champion Douglas Whyte did the rest, driving the Commands gelding to a 17-1 score in the 1000m Class 4.

Hong Kong racing returns at Sha Tin, 13 October.

– hkjc.com (David Morgan)

The WSB Grand Heritage has been split into two races and moved to Turffontein Inside track as the Vaal racecourse has not improved sufficiently yet to stage it.

The two races will be called the WSB Grand Series leg 1 and leg 2 respectively, both run over 1475m, and a potential match race between the two winners will take place in December.

Mardi Gras (JC Photographics)

The original Grand Heritage favourite Mardi Gras has a harder task than he would have had in a 28 horse field down the straight as he has drawn wide and looks to have ended up in the stronger of the two heats. Furthermore, his chief rivals have generally drawn well. However, he has class, a good turn of foot and as a four-year-old son of Oratorio who is improving and is having his third run after gelding he looks to be ahead of the handicapper off a 90 merit rating. He is thus tipped to win but Gavin Lerena will have his work cut out from draw eleven. Tsitsikamma Dance had some useful Cape Town form and won his Highveld debut nicely over 1400m. He is likely to have come on from that run and now has blinkers on from a nice draw of four. Zouaves is another classy runner in the field and he has landed a plum draw of three over an ideal trip. Daffiq caught the eye running on well last time over 1450m and is well drawn in six and over an ideal trip. This is his third run after a layoff and as he was at one stage well regarded by former trainer Mike de Kock he has a shout off a mere 82 merit rating. Full Of Attitude won well over 1450m last time and is drawn in pole but he does have a five point merit rating raise to overcome. Danza is distance suited and Mujallad can’t be ignored despite a wide draw. They are selected in the order mentioned.

In the first leg Rings And Things is selected as the best bet on the card in her third run after a layoff. This classy Querrari filly finished just two lengths behind the subsequent Grade 1 Rising Sun Gold Challenge winner Undercover Agent in the CTS Mile and yet is merit rated just 85. This is an ideal trip and she has a good draw of five. Soldier On looks to be a progressive sort and has a plum draw of two, although he would prefer a mile. Divine Odyssey is a progressive sort who is well drawn over a suitable trip and he has the advantage of Gavin Lerena aboard. Purple Diamond has a tongue tie and blinkers on and has the ability to go close from a good draw over a suitable trip. Chepardo ran a good preparation race over 1450m here from a tricky draw and he should have come on from the run so can earn despite another unfavourable draw. Hakeem is distance suited and has dropped to a competitive mark but has a tough draw.

In the WSB Grand Heritage Series Consolation race Big Mistake will be hard to beat. He ran second last time to the classy filly Mighty High and now has his third run after a layoff. It is also his third run on the Highveld and his third run as a gelding so he should be cherry ripe to deliver over a step up in trip to 1475m which he should relish as he was making good late progress in his only career attempt at 1400m. The dangers could be the progressive filly Gimme Hope Joanna, who only has 50kg to carry, and the promising Flying Winger, who is coming off a pleasing comeback effort from a nine month layoff.

The fifth race could see the improving Until Dawn following up on her last victory. Gold Shades, who has dropped to an attractive merit rating, and the promising youngster Chitengo look to be the dangers.

In the first leg of the Pick 6, an Assessment Plate over 1450m, Social Order is well weighted and could run well fresh over a trip a touch sharp, and Silver God and Rule The Night should also make their presence felt.

The last leg of the Pick 6 is a typically tricky staying race and Santa Vittoria is tipped to prove herself better if ridden from off the pace but all of Goede Hoop, Glamarous Scandal, Parisienne Chic, Knysna Rose and Emerald Lady have to be considered too.

By David Thiselton

Enable gained a thrilling second consecutive victory in the G1 Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp, France, last Sunday and the brilliant filly may now create another piece of history by becoming the third horse to be crowned the Cartier Horse Of The Year twice.

Enable (Liesl King)

Only Ouija Board (2004 & 2006) and Frankel (2011 & 2012) have received this premier equine accolade more than once, but the John Gosden-trained four-year-old could join such illustrious company following her short-neck verdict over Sea Of Class in Europe’s leading middle-distance and richest contest.

Victory at Longchamp saw Enable, out with injury for most of the year, move up to 56 points in the Cartier Horse Of The Year and the Cartier Older Horse standings, but the daughter of Nathaniel, homebred by owner Khalid Abdullah, holds leading chances in both categories due to the unique nature of the Cartier Racing Awards.

European horseracing’s top awards are delivered through a tried and tested combination of points earned by horses in Pattern races (30%), combined at the end of season with the opinions of a panel of racing journalists/handicappers (35%) and votes from readers of Racing Post and The Daily Telegraph plus ITV Racing viewers (35%).

The participation of the public plays a crucial role in determining the winners of each year’s Cartier Racing Awards and gives horseracing fans the chance to put forward their favourite horses in a meaningful way.

The 28th Cartier Racing Awards will be presented at a glittering ceremony before an invited audience of 300 at the Dorchester Hotel, London, England, on the evening of Tuesday, November 13, 2018.

– racenews@racenewsonline.com

The handicappers have raised Rainbow Bridge seven points to a new merit rating of 104 following his impressive win in last Saturday’s Matchem Stakes but that still leaves the unbeaten four-year-old quite a bit below the mark required to win the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate. Legal Eagle, winner of the last three runnings, is rated 123 which makes him nearly ten lengths the better over a mile.

The Eric Sands stable reported yesterday that their star had “pulled up well.” Surprise runner-up New Caledonia has been raised five points to 95 but last year’s winner Our Mate Art, beaten two lengths in third, has been left on an unchanged 99.

Rainbow Bridge (Liesl King)

Last year’s Cape Guineas winner Tap O’Noth, fourth in the Matchem, and Progress Plate winner One World – also unchanged on 113 and 109 respectively – were said by Vaughan Marshall yesterday to have come out of their races well, with the trainer adding: “It was a very pleasing day.”  But Justin Snaith’s comments about Kasimir echo those of Bernard Fayd’Herbe which suggested that One World may have been flattered by the courageous way he appeared to outbattle Kasimir.

Snaith said: “It was Kasimir’s first run since May, he had only had one gallop since then and he got tired in the last bit. He is best in sprints but it is going to be hard for him because he has a high rating of 105.”

The champion trainer had arranged to sell the horse to Hong Kong but the deal fell through because the four-year-old failed the piroplasmosis test aimed at ensuring that he is free from any trace of tick-borne diseases.

The market in the jockeys’ championship has altered dramatically in the 16 days since this column expressed the opinion that Anton Marcus, then fourth in the log, was a big price at 20-1.

The four-time champion, now on 42 winners and only one behind log leader Muzi Yeni, has been slashed to 4-1 with Yeni, Richard Fourie and Gavin Lerena joint favourites at 33-10 with World Sports Betting.

Now the value looks to be Ryan Munger who landed a four-timer at Kimberley on Monday to put himself third on the log. He has, surprisingly, been pushed out from 14-1 to 25-1 despite being a natural lightweight with a keenness to travel that sees him having more rides than anyone except Yeni.

Munger, on 37 winners after landing the opener at Durbanville yesterday on Rob Roy for Glen Kotzen, said: “I am going well. Rob Roy was my fifth winner from my last nine rides and my strike rate is higher than it has been for quite some time.”

Current champion Lyle Hewitson is an 11-2 chance and others priced up are Aldo Domeyer at 15-2 and Warren Kennedy on 16-1 with 45-1 available about Keagan de Melo. Greg Cheyne is a 55-1 shot and you can get 75-1 about Craig Zackey.

Backers of favourites had a tough time yesterday with all bar Silver Maple biting the dust including many people’s idea of the biggest certainty, Trippi’s Express. He was beaten just over a length into third at even money behind the Paul Reeves-trained all-the-way 9-1 shot Photocopy (Donovan Dillon) in the Betting World Handicap. To be fair, it was only the colt’s third run and he was rated 85.

Brett Crawford said: “I expected better but I am not devastated. At this time of year it is harder for three-year-olds against older horses than people think and he was giving weight to the two four-year-olds that beat him.”

By Michael Clower