Mike de Kock has decided to close his permanent operation at Summerveld.  All the runners in the stable will forthwith be based under one roof at Randjesfontein in Johannesburg like they had been for the first half of De Kock’s training career.

De Kock commented: “This is a business decision. It makes no economic sense for us to keep the Summerveld stable going all year round. We will still be raiding for three or four months in winter with a small, exclusive string during the Champions Season.

“We have been allocated 25 extra stable at Randjesfontein, the total string will be about 160 horses. We may also send a small string to Cape Town for a few months, though travelling with horses within our own country has become almost as difficult as travelling overseas.”

In his spell as a trainer officially based at Summerveld, Mike won the KZN Trainers’ Title nine times between 2002 and 2012.

De Kock also announced that his long-time assistant trainer, Nathan Kotzen, has left the stable to take out his own licence.  He said: “Nathan was with the stable in KZN for 16 years and he worked with some of the best horses in the world, let alone the country.  He’s a top horseman in his own right, he has the credentials and is well placed to make his mark. He won’t start off without support, I have left a few of my own horses with him and so has the Slack family. We wish Natie all the best in his new career.”

– Mikedekockracing.com

Muzi Yeni will be flying the South African flag in Greece on Saturday.

Phumelela are “taking South African horseracing to the world” by sponsoring a race meeting at Markopoulo Racetrack in Athens and Yeni will be the face of SA racing.

There will be six races and Yeni will ride in five of them, his first ride coming up in Race 2. It appears the racing authorities in Greece have been working hard to get good rides for the South African and he has several decent mounts.

The main race of the day has been named The South African Races Cup with all the other names at meeting having South African references.

The party representing Phumelela will be headed up by International Executive Director John Stuart and he and Yeni will have a busy day. After a morning tour of the racing facilities, they will host a press conference where they will face some 50 journalists and an equal number of agents. Yeni is sure to be the main attraction and will be asked to introduce himself and talk about his expectations for the day.

In addition, six of the races from Turffontein and three from Kenilworth will be shown at the Athens meeting.

After racing the visiting party has been invited to a dinner at which two members of the South African Embassy in Greece will also attend.

“It’s a great honour for me to be among the delegation attending this meeting,” said Yeni. “Hopefully we will be able to give them a taste of how good our racing is.”

 

The Mike de Kock stable are keeping their options open with Janoobi, with both the SA Classic and HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes on Saturday 1 April pencilled in as possibilities, according to assistant trainer Mathew de Kock.

Janoobi won the first leg of this year’s SA Triple Crown, R1-million Betting World Gauteng Guineas (Grade 2) over 1600m at Turffontein last Saturday, with the 1800m SA Classic forming the middle leg and the 2450m SA Derby on 6 May the third.

A R2-million bonus is offered to a horse who wins all three legs but De Kock does not believe the Triple Crown bonus will be paid out this year. “In my opinion Heavenly Blue will be the one to beat in the SA Classic, plus I’m not convinced Janoobi will go more than 1800m.”

Janoobi, he said, “took the race very well and is taking it easy this week because he was at a peak and really well on Saturday. We’ll keep him ticking over until next month.”

Heavenly Blue, on the other hand, was “not as well or as ready” as Janoobi for the Gauteng Guineas because his main mission is the SA Classic. “I can’t afford to be too soft on him because I’ve got to help him come on a little bit,” said De Kock. “I’m over the moon with his third placing. He’s going to make a lot of improvement. We’ll finally see the best of him in the Classic over a distance he’s always wanted, 1800m and more.”

Janoobi gave Mike de Kock his 3,000th career winner after wins earlier in the meeting by Rafeef and Nother Russia.

De Kock said: “The obvious next stepping stone for Rafeef is the Horse Chestnut Stakes. The 1600m is his maximum, I think. He also took his race well and is very fresh.”

In terms of Acacia Handicap winner Nother Russia, De Kock said: “I think the older she’s got the better she’s got. A big thanks to Jess Slack (of owner Mauritzfontein Stud) for giving her that time. She was very well going into Saturday’s race and if she’d drawn in single figures I would have been much more confident.

“You can see by that performance she’s definitely better than her rating. It’s gone up the maximum eight points (4kg), but I’m happy to take what the handicappers give her after a win like that.”

Her stable companion Shaama was a weak favourite but finished seventh and De Kock said her performance confirmed she’s best at 1200m and 1400m.

“I think a true-run 1600m would find her out,” he said. “She took the race well and we’ll be bringing her back to 1160m.”

Fillies he saddled finished second, third, fifth and sixth behind easy winner Smiling Blue Eyes in the R500,000 Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas.

The race is the first leg of the Triple Tiara, which offers a R1-million bonus and also comprises the SA Fillies Classic on 1 April and the SA Oaks on 6 May.

He had given second-placed Al Hawraa a “money chance” in the preliminaries because “she’d improved in her work”, but even he was impressed with the run.

“She only got going late and will be better in the 1800m Fillies Classic next month. She’s a straightforward filly, easy to work with.”

Was he a bit disappointed with favourite Orchid Island’s third placing? “Not at all. I think 1600m is too short for her, plus she had six weeks between runs and missed work. She’s a small filly, so the going last Saturday was not her best – she prefers it a little bit on top. She’ll also be going for the Fillies Classic.

“I think Belle Rose ran a cracker in fifth. She was stone last at the 400m mark and ran fifth, so made up a lot of ground. On pedigree, she is crying out for more ground so will definitely go for the next leg of the Triple Tiara.”

As for sixth-placed Ektifaa, who came in off a four-run winning sequence which included beating the boys in the Tony Ruffel Stakes, he said: “She wasn’t disgraced. The stamina doubts were there and she just didn’t see out the ‘mile’. We’ll re-programme her to see if she’s good enough for a top-class 1200m race.”

He believes his three Classic fillies are even in the ability stakes, but said when pressed: “If I had to put my head on a block this far ahead of the Fillies Classic, I’d still side with Orchid Island – providing she gets better going – because she’s got more class than the others.”

TABNews

Grant van Niekerk, sidelined by accumulated suspensions since Met day, resumes at Fairview tomorrow when he rides Primrose Lane in the Breeders’ Guineas for Darryl Hodgson as well as Track-King (Justin Snaith) and Ntoma (Alan Greeff).

Just one short of his half century for the season, he rides in all eight races at Kenilworth on Saturday including Sister Soozie for his new boss Andre Nel in the Place Your Bets Maiden. The filly is expected to start favourite and probably represents his best chance on the day.

He has two mounts for his old boss Candice Bass-Robinson – Come On Sonny and Oh Behave – as well as rides for Geoff Woodruff, Hodgson, Piet Steyn, Ronnie Sheehan and Joey Ramsden. The last-named has put him up on newcomer Dynasty’s Blossom in the opening maiden juvenile.

This Dynasty filly is out of the seven-time winner Crimson Blossom and at R4.5 million was the third-highest price horse at last year’s Cape Premier Yearling Sale. She was bought by Mayfair Speculators, Maine Chance and MV Magnier and will carry the world famous all dark blue colours of Magnier’s mother Sue.

By Michael Clower

Duncan Howells’ pair of Vodacom Durban July contenders from last year, Saratoga Dancer and Ten Gun Salute, have returned from a holiday on the farm and will be two of KZN’s chief flagbearers during the SA Champions Season.

Howells also spoke about his other Champions Season hopefuls.   Saratoga Dancer, who made critics eat their words by finishing fifth in the July, is said by Howells to be “very well, evergreen and sound”.He will follow much the same route as last year, namely the Gr 2 IOS Drill Hall Stakes over 1400m,  the Gr 3 Cup Trial over 1800m, The July and The Champions Cup.

Ten Gun Salute, ninth in the July, might be a good horse to follow. He was gelded during his layoff and Howells said, “He had become very headstrong and difficult to hold in work, but he is now a completely different horse.”

Three-year-old Captain Al colt Secret Captain, a half-brother to the champion filly Bela-Bela, has also returned from the farm. He has always looked likely to improve as he matures. However, Howells is still not sure what his correct distance is. To date, he has disappointed every time he has been stepped up beyond 1200m. Howells will start him off over 1200m and make a decision from there.

Dawn Calling, runner up in both the Gr 2 Golden Slipper and Gr 1 Thekwini, was unlucky in the Gr 1 WSB Cape Fillies Guineas. She then finished a decent third in the Gr 3 Flamboyant Stakes, in which she was the only three-year-old. Howells said, “She is a very good filly, not as good as Same Jurisdiction, but the latter came from an exceptional crop. She will go for the Daisy Fillies Guineas and the Woolavington 2000.”

The sprinter Elusivenchantment, an Elusive Fort half-sister to Via Africa, has won five of her nine starts. She will be out in a Pinnacle Stakes event next week in preparation for the Champions Season fillies sprint features.  Howells said, “She is not as good as Via Africa and there are some very good fillies from Cape Town and Jo’burg, so she will up against it.”

Howells also trains another half-sister to Via Africa, two-year-old Swift Dancer (Oratorio), who finished second on debut over 1000m. He said, “She is a nice filly with plenty of scope to improve, she will train on. She is not very big, but will definitely win races. I don’t know how good she is yet.”

He said about two-year-old debut winner, Neptune’s Rain (Antonius Pius), “She is very promising and will be aimed at the Allan Robertson, although I’m still cautious because I don’t know how much she beat.”

Howells said Lunar Rush was a similar type to Elusivenchantment and will likely follow a similar route.

He rates the three-year-old Dynasty gelding Wild Wicket and said, “He is decent and progressive and the Guineas and Daily News will be on his agenda if he shows us he’s that quality as he has been difficult to place with his high merit rating.”

He said of the 92 merit-rated Kahal gelding Amazon King, “He steps up every time I run him. We will see if he stays a mile on Sunday and if he does he will go for the Daisy Guineas. Whatever happens he will go for the Byerley Turk (1400m).”

Howells said Sylvester The Cat’s problem was only his temperament. He had not completely written off his chances of becoming a top class horse, but said his likely aims would be races like the Listed Thukela Handicap on July day.

The Gimmethegreenlight gelding Legend will unfortunately miss the rest of his three-year-old season, but will be back as a four-year-old. His temperament suggested there had been something wrong and the problem was duly isolated. He has been sent to the farm to recuperate.

Howells said he had the best two-year-old crop on pedigree he had ever had and expected to be contesting plenty of two-year-old features.

By David Thiselton