It is touch and go whether the pending shipment of Legal Eagle and a few others to the USA will get off the ground due to a lack of numbers.

The flight, which is due to leave at roundabout the end of February, was the initiative of Mayfair Speculators racing manager Derek Brugman. However, the cost of the flight is US$600,000 and the export task team, under the stewardship of Chris van Niekerk, had therefore hoped to have a plane filled with 15 horses.

Before Saturday’s Sun Met there were only eight horses on the flight list. They were Legal Eagle, Marinaresco, The Conglomerate, Silver Mountain, Flying Ice, a couple of broodmares and a sport horse.

Brugman is not yet aware of any new bookings or cancellations which might have taken place after the Met. He said the flight was only ever going to take place if it was economically viable. This was with a view to the future as it could then become a regular exporting option.

The horses will be subjected to a 60 day lockdown upon landing in the USA. This makes it a quicker export route than the Mauritius one, which South African thoroughbreds have been using.

However, horses who wish to move on to other countries are then required, by most countries, to spend additional residency time in the USA.

Another of the biggest stumbling blocks to the USA route had been the lack of exercise opportunity for horses during the lockdown. However, thanks to the efforts of Brugman and CTS MD Adrian Todd, the US Department Of Agriculture had agreed to the installation of a treadmill.

By David Thiselton

Triple Crown hero Abashiri has a new owner and is to be given a lengthy break before making an assault on the Sansui Summer Cup.

Mike Azzie said: “I scratched him from The Sun Met straight after his run in the Queen’s Plate. He will now have a good rest and then I will start him off from scratch once more and aim him at the Summer Cup.  He is a good horse and, while he might have lost his form, he won’t lose his ability.”

The four-year-old finished last in the Queen’s Plate and was returned not striding out. He was a well beaten fifth in the Green Point on his previous start, after a tough journey from Johannesburg which put him off his food for two days. However Azzie traces the horse’s loss of form to his running in the Vodacom Durban July.

He said: “Abashiri had a hard time winning the Triple Crown and I begged the owner (Adriaan van Vuuren) to put him away but he wanted to go for the July. The horse should never have run. He has recently changed hands and will race in the name of Corner Stone Trust for an owner I used to train for some years ago.”

Trainer-of-the-moment Brett Crawford is to be sent the Trippi colt out of a half-sister to Jeppe’s Reef and Disco Al who equalled the South African yearling record when knocked down to Coolmore’s M.V. Magnier for R6 million at the Cape Premier Yearling Sale. Markus Jooste is a part-owner in the Drakenstein-consigned colt who is named Mark The Doorman.

Candice Bass-Robinson will train the sales’ second highest-priced lot, Sovereign Sway, a Dynasty colt out of the Woolavington winner Viva Maria and bought by Kuda Holdings for R5.75 million.

Captain Of Tortuga, the R4.5 million Captain Al colt bought by Bernard Marais, is to go to Justin Snaith who won the Cape Fillies Guineas and the Majorca with the colt’s dam Ebony Flyer. Sean Tarry will train the Captain Al colt out of Orator’s Daughter purchased by David Redvers on behalf of Sheikh Fahad Al Thani, also for R4.5 million.

By Michael Clower

The Glen Kotzen-trained Trippi colt Gold Standard, now the highest merit rated three-year-old in the country, will be campaigned in the SA Champions Season in KZN.

Meanwhile, the route which Investec Cape Derby winner Edict Of Nantes takes is still up in the air.

Gold Standard has been accorded a merit rating of 115 by the handicappers after finishing fourth in Saturday’s Gr 1 R5 million The Sun Met and Kotzen said this would likely rule him out of the running in the Vodacom Durban July.

Kotzen’s concern is the merit ratings of the other three-year-olds in the country. He pointed out the horse which had beaten Gold Standard fair and square in the Gr 1 Grand Parade Cape Guineas, William Longsword, was only merit rated 109, although he did recognise The Met itself had likely been correctly assessed.

Gold Standard’s chief targets will be the R600,000 Gr 2 Daisy Guineas and the R2 million Gr 1 Daily News 2000.

Kotzen was “very happy” with Gold Standard’s Met run and believed he could well have finished third had he not been interfered with by third-placed Captain America. He pointed out he was carried out eight horse widths and then had to be eased when squeezed between Captain America and the faster finishing Legal Eagle. The official margin between Captain America and Gold Standard was a length but Kotzen said it would have been impossible for a big horse like him to recover in time when having his stride broken at the most crucial stage. “But it’s history,” he added, as he looked forward to the future for the classy colt.

Kotzen will be targeting the Gr 2 Daisy Fillies Guineas with Judpot filly Final Judgement, who was the first three-year-old home in the Gr 1 Klawervlei Majorca Stakes over 1600m.

The yard’s promising two-year-old Horse Chestnut filly Gold Image will also be going to KZN. Kotzen said, “She was beaten by two big, strapping colts (when third in Saturday’s R1 million Kuda Sprint) and I liked the way she finished her race. She will be a nice filly in a couple of months’ time and will be aimed at the Allan Robertson.”

Mayfair Speculators’ racing manager Derek Brugman said it had not yet been finalised whether the Brett Crawford-trained Edict Of Nantes would be kept back in Cape Town for the Winter Series or be campaigned in the SA Champions Season. It had also not yet been decided, if staying in Cape Town, whether he would raid for The July. The Count Du Bois colt has been accorded a merit rating of 102.

By David Thiselton

Last year’s Met winner Smart Call has been sent to Sir Michael Stoute who was an interested spectator at the Sun Met on Saturday.

The five-year-old, who also won the Maine Chance Paddock Stakes, was sent to Newmarket via Mauritius and was based at Mary Slack’s Abington Place stables when still trained by Alec Laird. He intended running her in the Sun Chariot Stakes before sending her to America for the Breeders’ Cup meeting but she met with a late setback and had to be scratched from the Newmarket Grade 1. It was then decided not to go for the Breeders’ Cup.

Mrs Slack said: “We are still not sure exactly what she did but it can’t have been much because nobody could find anything wrong. But we will have to see how she is when she starts training with Michael.”

By Michael Clower

Sun Met winner Whisky Baron’s part-owner Ross Kieswetter admitted emotions had run high in their second floor box at Kenilworth on Saturday and even a few tears were shed among the hugs and kisses.

His parents, Wayne and Belinda, and brother Craig, together with racing manager Craig Carey, have poured both professionalism and passion into the owning-and-breeding operation named  Ridgemont Stud.

To have won the Met so early in Ridgemont’s existence was beyond words and Ross said, “The July is the July, but for a Capetonian to win the Met … it’s huge.”

Ross and Craig, who are the official owners of Whisky Baron, had decided over dinner one night to name the Australian-bred horse in honour of their father and this made the win even more special. Wayne is an entrepreneur whose business successes include a partnership in a whisky distillery company in Scotland. Belinda was born in Scotland and sons Craig and Ross thus chose racing colours which resemble the national flag of Scotland, the St. Andrews Cross.

Ross became confident of victory at roundabout the 300m mark, at which stage Whisky Baron was ranging up to the favourite Legal Eagle. “Greg Cheyne had once told me this horse’s biggest asset was that he has a second kick,” he revealed. Whisky Baron duly found another gear to draw clear and win by a cosy 1,5 lengths, thus giving trainer Brett Crawford his third Met and Cheyne his first.

Ross described racing as an “addiction” and said if this characteristic had not previously existed within him it had now “definitely kicked in!” His father Wayne had been involved in racehorse ownership many years ago on a small scale and even used to work ride for his trainer Chris Snaith on Muizenberg beach.

When Wayne recently returned to the game his passion was evidenced by him buying Ross a racehorse for his 18^th birthday. This Australian-bred colt by Elusive Quality, trained by Joey Ramsden, went on to win four races. About two years ago Wayne founded Ridgemont Stud as a banner for the family’s racing and breeding operation.

Kieswetter brought in Craig and Amanda Carey, who have vast experience working with and breeding thoroughbreds as well as being involved in other industry concerns (Craig is a Director of Cape Thoroughbred Sales (CTS) and Amanda is CTS’ Sales Manager). Although racing and breeding is Wayne’s hobby, he has, dedicated himself to the Ridgemont operation “big time”, according to Carey.

Kieswetter and Carey have strategy and feedback meetings a few times a week. Ridgemont Stud’s emphasis is on quality not quantity and they in fact currently have only about 24 horses in training.

It was decided at the time of Ridgemont’s formation that Craig and Ross Kieswetter would race the colts in their colours, while the fillies would run in the Ridgemont colours.

Whisky Baron, who was selected in Australia by Carey and trainer Joey Ramsden, was in fact the first racehorse Craig Kieswetter ever owned. Craig Carey recalls Whisky Baron at the Sales. He had a “huge hindquarter” and was a very good “mover”, so was purchased despite his sire Manhattan Rain having still been unproven at that stage.

Carey points out Ridgemont is very much a team effort and everybody involved participates actively. Ross, for example, has had a stint at both Klawervlei Stud, under the guidance of John Koster, and with trainer Willie Haggas in England, in order to learn the ins and outs of breeding and racing. He has also done some bid spotting.

Ridgemont has recently bought one of South Africa’s most established stud farms, Highlands Farms Stud, which was taken to great heights by the late great business magnate Graham Beck. They have thus overnight landed some top quality bloodlines, including the reigning Equus Champion Broodmare Our Table Mountain.

Ridgemont had earlier bought a plot in Wellington, where Craig and Amanda Carey now back and pre-train the company’s racehorses. Mike Sharkey, the long time stud manager of Highlands, will continue in his role, so is now also part of the Ridgemont team.

This suits Craig Carey as the plot in Wellington is a good base from which to visit Ridgemont’s horses in training (Racing Manager is one of Carey’s roles). The plot is also conveniently close to the airport, as Carey attends many Sales around the globe on behalf of Ridgemont.

Craig Kieswetter played one day cricket for England 71 times as a wicketkeeper-batsman before an eye injury ended his career. He is now attempting to qualify for the European golf tour. However, he flies back and forth between South Africa and Europe, so is still able to play an active role in Ridgemont. Carey envisages Craig one day being very much part of the day to day running of the operation.

Ridgemont already have a couple of valuable broodmares overseas in Cold As Ice and In The Fast Lane, through whom they will be able to bring good thoroughbred genes into South Africa. The pair  will stand in the UK and Australia respectively and will thus have access to top sires. However, their progeny will be imported to South Africa. Cold As Ice looks likely to go to Oasis Dream this season, while In The Fast Lane is in foal to one of Australia’s leading sires Snitzel.

Brett Crawford is currently Ridgemont’s chief trainer, but they also have five or six horses with Candice Bass-Robinson, one with Eric Sands, some with Alan Greeff in Port Elizabeth and a couple with Ormond Ferraris.

However, they intend expanding their number of trainers.

Whisky Baron will soon be departing for Drakenstein Stud, where he will have a well deserved holiday. Carey said the big horse would then likely be on his way to KZN, where the Vodacom Durban July will be his chief target.

He has been accorded a 120 merit rating by the handicappers, who used third placed Captain America as the line horse, so is likely to be top weight in the July.

Craig and Ross are only 29 and 23 years-old respectively. To have such dynamic youngsters achieving success as owners is brilliant news for South African racing.

By David Thiselton