Candice Bass-Robinson still harbours Grade 1 ambitions for Horizon despite the record-priced colt managing only fifth when starting odds-on for the Investec Cape Derby.

She said: “Horizon is going to Durban and he will be aimed at the Daily News (May 27). In the Derby they went too slowly for him and they turned it into a sprint.”

Elevated, second in the Cape Classic and fourth in the Guineas, fared even worse in the Derby and finished last.

Riaan van Reenen said: “His lungs were full of mucus. I shouldn’t have run him but you only get one shot at that race and I took a chance.

“He has been having a rest ever since and he is fine again now. I am going to prepare him for the Winter Series at Kenilworth.”

By Michael Clower

Enthusiastic racing mother-and-son combination Delma and Lance Sherrell are Cape Town based but their roots are in KZN and their black and white colours will be flying the “Sharks” flag boldly during the SA Champions Season.

Lance was selected as one of the flyhalves for the 1994 Springbok rugby tour of New Zealand and he had earlier followed in the footsteps of both his late father Reg and grandfather Reg Evelyn by playing for Natal. Initially, racing For Delma and Lance was merely a continuation of Reg’s involvement, but Lance admits, “It has now got me hooked”.

This winter the adrenalin will run faster than ever, because not only will Captain America be providing the Sherrell family with another shot at the Vodacom Durban July, but a home-bred of theirs, Bold Respect, will be fancied to land a two-year-old Gr 1.

Lance views racing very much as a sport and it provides a fitting replacement for his active days in the arena.

“Syndicate involvement is more fun,” he said. “There is the build up to the race where you can all talk rubbish and joust with other owners for a pie and a coke. It is like a team sport, you take the pain together and celebrate together if you win. You’re not in to make money, but just to enjoy it, and it’s a good excuse to get out of the house. A race like the Met starts with golf on the Friday and the camaraderie throughout the weekend is unbelievable. But in racing it doesn’t really matter who wins, rivals are very supportive of each other’s successes.”

Lance said after family horse Alexis had won the Gr 2 KRA Fillies Guineas two years ago, “”It is more exhilarating than lining up a kick in a big game!”

However, watching the home-bred Boldly Respectable win at Kenilworth about a year later was a whole new ball game. Lance said, “It is a completely different vibe and deeply satisfying, as you have been involved with this horse for its whole life.”

Reg Sherrell was a work associate of Robert Maingard’s in the days the family lived in Durban. Reg and Robert raced horses together and Ricky Maingard was their trainer. Lance used to tag along with his father to the Tote on a Saturday and developed an interest in the sport.

Among the horses Reg had shares in were the 1985 Cape Derby winner Impressive Style and the filly Respectable, who won the Gr 1 Natalia Stakes and she finished fourth in the 1990 July.

Reg, who passed away just 12 days after Alexis’ KRA Fillies Guineas win, had a couple of horses with Basil Marcus when the latter moved to Singapore in 2010. Stud farm manager Craig Carey then recommended Brett Crawford as a trainer to Lance.  Shortly after joining the Crawford yard, Reg passed his colours over to Delma.

Lance does have his own colours, but prefers to race with the black and white family colours, particularly due to their association with Sharks rugby.

When Crawford offered the Sherrells a share in a Captain Al colt, which he had gone over budget to secure, they jumped at it. They had once lived next door to Captain Al’s original owners, the Dos Santos’s, and Delma had always wanted a horse by the great sire. They thus landed a share in Captain America, whose first big win was in the R2 million Lanzerac Ready To Run Stakes and he later won a Gr 1 in Johannesburg.

Lance quipped, “My friends are always surprised when I say Captain America has been very costly. You see he was the one who prompted us to keep on buying! A winning culture becomes infectious in any sport.”

The Sherrells decided to breed with Respectable Lady, one of the horses transfered to Crawford from Basil Marcus, for sentimental reasons. She was the granddaughter of Respectable and Reg and Robert Maingard had also raced her mother Respectable Model.

Respectable’s great-grandson, Bold Respect, won the R1 million Kuda Sprint over 1200m on Sun Met day.

The Sherrell’s stand Respectable Lady at Dr Ashley, Dr Bev and Rose Parker’s top class Port Elizabeth-based stud farm, Ascot Stud.

A July win would mean a tremendous amount to the Sherrells. They are hoping this will be the race in which Captain America finally sheds his bridesmaid tag.

Gulf Storm is another of the Sherrells’ Gr 1-winners. The Gr 1 Tsogo Sprint, where he was runner up two years ago, will be on his agenda again. Search Party, winner of the Gr 2 WSB Merchants, will also likely carry the Sherrells colours in the Tsogo Sprint. Both Gulf Storm and Search Party were bred by Ascot Stud. Alexis will defend her Gr 2 Tibouchina crown before likely making her swansong in the Gr 1 Jonsson Workwear Garden Province Stakes.

Lance recently attended the funeral of his Springbok tour room mate and “Dirt Trackers” half-back companion, the legendary Joost van der Westhuizen. It was a sad occasion but also a happy one. Joost’s passing had brought together rugby playing contemporaries who had not seen each other for twenty odd years. There was much reminiscing and laughter. It is this camaraderie which sportsmen thrive on.

Considering Crawford sent out the first and third for this year’s Met, owned by an England cricketer and a Bok rugby player respectively, his yard could not be in a better place. Lance shares his racing successes with his former rugby colleagues. It can only be good for the Sport Of Kings if his enthusiasm one day rubs off on some of them.

David Thiselton

 

Noah From Goa and Light The Lights will be aimed next at the Gr1 Jebel Hatta over 1800m on Super Saturday at Meydan, 4 March.

They finished second and fifth respectively to Championship in Thursday’s Gr2 Zabeel Mile and Mike de Kock commented on his website [Mikedekockracing.com]: “Noah From Goa was beaten fair and square, he ran a good race, I think he still has a length or two in the tank and Christophe reckons he will see out the 1800m of the Jebel Hatta.

“Light The Lights carried just a little extra condition, he will have no problems with the 1800m and should be stripped on the night.

Watch Noah From Goa – courtesy of Andrew Bon: 

 

Andre Nel has a 20% strike rate at Kenilworth this season  – only Shane Humby, with six winners from just 30 runners, can match that – and Sabine Plattner’s private trainer can strike with Kampala Campari in the Racing.Its A Rush Handicap tomorrow.

This colt won first time out on New Year’s Eve and was beaten only half a length when pitched into handicap company three weeks later.  True, the assessors hit him with a 2kg rise for that but the extra two furlongs here may swing the balance.

Punters are beginning to take a jaundiced view of Kapteinspandiseile after two successive defeats, both times starting hot favourite, but the Mike Robinson runner should be a better price in the mile maiden (race four).

On the day after last time’s disappointing fifth at 6-10 the trainer reported to the stipes that the horse returned with a distended off-fore fetlock.

“He was trotting sound but his joint was slightly swollen,” the trainer explains. “But he is a big-striding horse and he fought for his head in the race. I feel he would have done better had he been allowed to stride on. You will see a different horse on Saturday.”

Richard Fourie, who had the mount on the last two occasions, has preferred to partner what he hopes is the aptly-named Perfect Choice who finished a fifth of a length the better last time but the Kaptein is taken to score for Donovan Dillon.

Herodus, third to subsequent Kuda Sprint winner Bold Respect, is the only raced runner in the opening Juvenile Maiden. That form should be good enough despite Victorious Captain (fifth) failing to frank it last Saturday. However R500 000 buy Valedictorian gets the vote.

The Fillies Maiden 35 minutes later looks wide open and it could be worth taking a chance with newcomer Straat-Kind to give Nel his 38^th winner of the campaign.

By Michael Clower

If you’ve been following the handful of Tony Nassif runners campaigned in KZN this season, especially on the Greyville polytrack, you’ve probably been handsomely rewarded. Highveld-based Nassif has saddled just five runners on the Greyville polytrack this term for two wins and a second, and he saddles Tales Of Mambo who has strong claims on best form in the fourth on the Greyville poly tonight.

Tales Of Mambo has been struggling a bit for form this season but this has resulted in her merit rating taking a nose dive [74 > 53] and the return to KZN – where she’s earned the majority of her stakes to date – could see her bounce back to best. In fact, her last win was on the Greyville poly over 2000m and she seems equally effective over tonight’s shorter mile trip.

The four-year-old filly looks extremely well in off a current mark of 53 and when you factor in the additional 4kg claim of apprentice Mpumelelo Mjoka, as well as Nassif’s impressive strike rate at this track, Tales Of Mambo appeals as a solid eachway play at opening odds of 13/2.

Exotic players would be justified in playing wide in this apprentice handicap and course and distance specialist Gavea Girl is one that warrants inclusion in all perms. Like Tales Of Mambo, her merit rating has been dropping – albeit less dramatically – and the removal of the blinkers suggests that her poor last effort over this track and trip can be forgiven.

Roy’s Dollar beat a few of these home, including Gavea Girl, four starts back over this track and trip and warrants respect with the blinkers fitted following a few one-paced efforts.

The exciting and innovative 20/20 format limits Anthony Delpech to just four rides this evening but he could get the ball rolling early with Fashion Talk in the opener. Delpech has been somewhat selective with his rides since his recent return from injury but he upped his average mounts per meeting with seven rides at Greyville on Sunday and scored with three of them. Fashion Talk loves the poly and was a fluent winner at this track two starts back. A solid follow-up effort suggests that she’s still competitive off her revised mark and Fashion Silk is another that looks value at opening odds of 9/2.

The Dennis Drier yard raised a few eyebrows midweek with a big-priced double and can score again with Sazerac in the third. The Philanthropist filly over-raced last time out and appears at her best when held up for a run. She produced a strong finish from off the pace two starts back and a repeat of that effort could prove enough to score in this lineup.

By Brendan Pather