Sylvester The Cat showed himself to be a horse with Classic potential when turning in a smart performance at Scottsville on Sunday. The gelded son of Black Minnaloushe formed part of a Duncan Howells treble and the stable has seemingly turned the corner after a quiet spell that was attributed to a low grade virus.

Sylvester The Cat’s win came in a particularly strong Graduation Plate but it was not so much the victory as the manner in which it was achieved that had tongues wagging. Jumping from an outside gate stable jockey Muzi Yeni found himself in front and went on to make all. “He jumped well and when I looked around to see that I didn’t cut anyone off he went half a stride forward and thought he was back in a 1200. I got him to come back to me and he raced with his ears pricked.”

Commenting post-race Howells said his charge could have a bright future but needs to control his temperament. “He’s his own worst enemy. He’s a fighter. He will fight you with everything he’s got.”

Most impressive was the gelding’s turn of foot as Bulleting Home loomed up alongside with the line in his sights. But Sylvester The Cat quickly found another gear and sped clear to win as he liked. “He was not 100% fit but he still found more. He’s still got a lot to prove but I think he’s above average and we will go the Guineas, Daily News route if things pan out,” said Howells.

Ten Gun Salute is another promising three-year-old in the Howells yard and the Michael Roberts Handicap winner is likely to follow the same route as Sylvester The Cat after being given a short break. “He’s back in full work. I think we might go the same route as Sylvester but I’m still debating. I think Sylvester’s best distances are from a mile to 2000m but Ten Gun will stay further.” He shed his maiden over 2400m.

Also in contention for a high profile South African Champions Season is the filly Cosmic Light however, it has not all been plain sailing. “She’s doing well but I battled to get her back on song after her trip to Cape Town. I think the SA Fillies Sprint (City Of Pietermaritzburg Fillies Sprint) is the right race for her but I’m still no sure at this stage.”

Former Howells inmate Same Jurisdiction leaves the Kenilworth quarantine station for Mauritius on March 27. Howells has a watching brief but said although the filly had lightened up a little – “one can expect that” – things were going well.

However, there has been a forced change of plans. “She tested positive for pyro and will not be allowed to race in America so I think her connections will be looking to race in Hong Kong,” said Howells.

By Andrew Harrison

Vodacom Durban July and Rising Sun Gold Challenge winner Legislate heads Justin Snaith’s 20-plus Champions Season team which also includes Cape Derby winner It’s My Turn and talented three-year-olds Black Arthur and Bela-Bela.

Snaith said: “I have a very strong string for Durban and I am looking forward to it. However I will take very few two-year-olds, maybe only a couple for Durban-based owners. It’s not worth taking them because they end up with very high merit ratings.”

Joey Ramsden, on the other hand, expects to be well represented on the two-year-old front, saying: “I have a nice string of juveniles for Durban although I am a bit short of three-year-olds this time as we have moved some of them on.

“I will be taking 20 horses, among them a number who went to Jo’burg and missed the summer including last year’s KRA Guineas winner The Conglomerate who had a throat infection and has been cut, St Tropez and the Track And Ball Derby winner Disco Al who is still reasonably rated.”

By Michael Clower

Picture: Justin Snaith

In the late 1980s legendary trainer Ormond Ferraris put his faith in a young apprentice named Weichong Marwing and the partnership developed into one of the finest combinations in the modern era of South African racing.

Marwing, who later became a worldwide name through his association with Mike de Kock and as a leading rider in Hong Kong, last week paid tribute to Ferraris in keeping with the latter achieving his 2500th career winner.

Back in the 1980s horseracing was one of the biggest industries in the country and crowds flocked to the racecourse.

On one particular Saturday, October 7 1989, young Marwing woke up with his name in the headlines and facing enormous pressure. He had ridden a five-timer at Newmarket the previous Tuesday, the last three of them for Ferraris, and was now confidently expected to bring home three favourites at the “Big T”.

Marwing well and truly arrived as a big name rider later that day when he brought all three of them home in the manner of a consummate professional, one of them for De Kock and two for Ferraris. The massive Turffontein crowd roared their approval in an era when jockeys and trainers were celebrities.

Apprentice Marwing took it to another level just a week later when winning the Gr 1 Ok Gold Bowl aboard the Ferraris-trained USA import Vigliotto for prolific owner Hilda Podlas.

Vigliotto beat three Gold Cup winners that day, Aquanaut, Castle Walk and Tropicante, as well as the Gr 1 Administrator’s winner Evening Mist.

Thinking back to those heady days, it came as no surprise when the Ferraris-Marwing partnership was renewed upon the latter’s return from Hong Kong a couple of years ago.

Marwing, speaking last week, counted himself as fortunate to have spent the last three months of his apprenticeship with Ferraris.

Upon attaining his jockey’s license the partnership continued unabated, yielding many big race winners.

Marwing confirmed Ferraris to be an extremely loyal man and added, “He is a very nice man to work for, you become more like friends than the normal trainer-jockey relationship. He is a true professional and sticks to one stable jockey who can expect to ride everything. As everybody knows, he is straight, and has never changed, there is only one way with him and that’s the right way, there is no bending of the rules.”

On the latter point Ferraris named his proudest achievement, upon being represented with a commemorative award two Saturdays ago, to be his 100% clean record.

Marwing continued, “It is a pity a lot of his big owners like Paddy and Moira Hinton have moved on and he also trained a lot of winners for the late Graham Beck. But 2500 winners is a remarkable achievement considering he has never had more than 60 horses in his string. The big trainers these days have at least 120 in their yards, so he did exceptionally well and was blessed to have had some top horses.”

Ferraris named the two best of these to be the four-times Gr 1-winning sprinting champion Tracy’s Element and the Triple Tiara winning-champion Cherry On The Top.

Marwing rode the Australian-bred Tracy’s Element to victory in three of her Gr 1s. He said, “She was top class and quite straight forward to ride, she had a lot of speed and then gave a kick. It was the early days of South Africans buying in Australia and the particular batch which came over with Tracy’s Element were outstanding.”

Paddy Hinton, an envelope magnate, allowed all of his fillies to race in the colours of his wife Moira, while the colts raced in his own colours.

Hinton sold Tracy’s Element back to Australia upon her retirement and she went on to produce dual Gr 1 winning filly Typhoon Tracy and two other black type horses, all three of them being by Red Ransom.

Veteran racing journalist Dave Mollet has noted Marwing is these days virtually the assistant trainer to Ferraris.

Marwing’s wife Anneli and son Wesley are now also involved in the yard as owner and budding jockey respectively. There was a special moment for the stable on Sansui Summer Cup day 2014 when Weichong rode Anneli’s filly Lazer Star to victory in the Gr 3 Magnolia Handicap. Since then he has won a Listed race and a Gr 2 aboard this classy Ferraris-conditioned filly.

Ferraris has an apparent aversion to the press, but Marwing said this is a misinterpretation. The great trainer in actual fact simply has an aversion to being misquoted. Marwing said, “He is from the old school and if he says ‘apples’ he expects it to be quoted exactly as he said it.”

Ferraris’ loyalty, as displayed through the Marwing family association, has been repaid to him. A good example is Peter Dimakogiannis, who has had horses with the yard since the early 1970s.

Therefore it was fitting Dimakogiannis’ promising colt Romany Prince scored the magic 2500th winner for Ferraris and even better that it happened in a feature race at Turffontein, the Listed Drum Star Handicap ( on March 12). The only pity was Marwing not being aboard as he is still recuperating from a back injury.

Wesley is also on the sidelines with a compressed fracture.

Weichong expects to start riding at the beginning of next month. He said both he and Wesley were as eager as each other to be back riding winners for the man who is affectionately known in the industry as “Uncle Ormie” and whose zest after 63 years of training remains undimmed.

By David Thiselton

Mike Bass is to take on the best two-year-old fillies in the country with Wake Up Maggie after Aldo Domeyer’s mount decisively floored the odds laid on stable companion Extradite in the Juvenile Fillies Plate at Kenilworth on Saturday.

Daughter Candice Robinson said: “Wake Up Maggie will probably soon travel to Durban and she might run in the SA Fillies Nursery (April 30) at Turffontein from there. Either that or she will go for the Allan Robertson at Scottsville on June 4.

“We rated her even before she ran. She has a good cruising speed and a great turn of foot – and that always makes for a good horse.”

Domeyer said: “Her home work suggested she had come on tremendously since her first run – I told everyone she had improved out of sight – and I thought this performance was full of merit.”

The winner carries the Markus Jooste colours and Domeyer added: “I just hope Anton Marcus wasn’t watching!” Some hope – the owner’s retained jockey misses nothing and reads the form book for breakfast.

Justin Snaith is to adopt a much more low key campaign with Michael Leaf’s Bishop’s Bounty (Richard Fourie) who ate up the ground in the other Juvenile Plate as hungrily as the hordes of Easter egg-hunting children let loose between races.

Snaith said: “I won’t rush into anything with him and he won’t be going to Durban or anywhere else. I know his brothers (Red Ray and Brutal Force) are fast but I don’t think he is a sprinter. I feel he needs to go round the turn.”

Riaan van Reenen, trainer of Elevated who ran on well to finish a length second, will be disappointed to read this because he had been hoping to take on the winner again in the Somerset 1200 on May 8.

He said: “They would have to give mine weight in the Somerset and I reckon they won’t be able to do that. This was a good run from Elevated as he hadn’t been on grass since his win on Queen’s Plate day.”

Fourie may not want to commit himself to becoming anyone’s stable jockey at the moment but he has wasted no time in resuming his profitable relationship with Snaith Racing and five of his six rides were for the former champion trainer who, in turn, was full of praise after Fourie made almost every metre to spring a 16-1 surprise on Drakenstein’s Entrechat in the Racing.It’s A Rush Handicap.

Snaith said: “When the others let Richard go to the front like that they do so at their own peril – and that was a great ride.”

The stipes ordered a vet’s report on Captain’s Companion who started 5-1 second favourite and finished with only two behind her. She appeared to be hanging and the vet said she was fatigued.

The legendary Terrance Millard, now 86, has suffered a minor stroke but he received a welcome tonic when newcomer Mission Control made a most convincing winning debut in the Michael Baigel Maiden. Indeed his partner Nola Rathbone declared: “That’s the best medicine Terrance could have.”

Paddy Kruyer says there is plenty more to come from the R210 000  Captain Al colt out of the 2008 KRA Fillies Guineas winner Rei Rei, adding: “I should have had him at the track a bit earlier but he had a high suspensory that was bothering him. He should get 1 400m and he will come on from this.

“This was a weakish race and I knew he would open up favourite the minute the bookies saw I had Aldo Domeyer on him. But we weren’t betting so it didn’t matter.”

Joey Ramsden reckons the fast ground could be the reason for Sugar Frosted striding short when starting favourite last time. The filly gained compensation under Donovan Dillon in the Eleste Bain Maiden and Ramsden said: “The ground is quite firm and maybe she was feeling it.”

Vaughan Marshall had particular cause for satisfaction when Banderos came good under MJ Byleveld in the last as the Milnerton trainer reported that the 7-1 shot had overcome a “career-threatening injury.”

BLOB The NHA is leaving no stone unturned following last year’s increase in the number of positives and pre-race blood samples were taken from ten of the runners.

By Michael Clower

Picture: Wake Up Maggie (Liesl King)

Inara will bid for her fourth Grade 1 win when she runs in Johannesburg for the first time in the L. Jaffee Empress Club Stakes at Turffontein on April 16 – and she will raid from Durban.

She did not thrive in Durban last year but the Bass team blame the dusty stabling – they have a different yard this time – and it being too near all the horse traffic for her to relax.

The four-year-old is one of 12 Mike Bass horses that arrived at Summerveld last Friday. The others included Cape Fillies Guineas winner Silver Mountain, Lanner Falcon (third to Inara in the Majorca), Helderberg Blue, Ernie and Nightingale whose impressive handicap debut on Queen’s Plate day put her in many punters’ notebooks.

More Bass horses will make the great trek for Champions Season but they won’t include – at least for the time being – Investec Cape Derby third Marinaresco.

Candice Robinson explained: “He is to run in the Winter Guineas at Kenilworth on April 23. He could then stay in Cape Town for the rest of the Winter Series or go to Durban for the Daily News on May 28.”

Carol Bass added: “He is a very good horse and we originally rated him our best three-year-old.”

By Michael Clower
Picture: Inara (Liesl King)