American Barry Irwin is known among his clients as “B Eye,” using his initials to refer to his uncanny ability that has gained him ‘legendary’ status in ferreting out talent from some of the most unlikely venues of the racing world.

In South Africa he discovered an internationally untapped source of top quality stock and has since forged a huge reputation in this country as a straight shooting man of vision. A glimpse of his genius was on display at Turffontein on Saturday with Aussie Austin winning the second and Heaps Of Fun the Gr2 Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas.

Barry Irwin

The Sean Tarry-trained Heaps Of Fun was the second South African stakes winner in the first local crop of Irwin’s Summerhill-based sire Visionaire. The first being Gr3 Strelitzia Stakes winner Royal Pleasure.

A Group 1 winning son of Grand Slam, himself a son of super sire Gone West, was imported into this country as Irwin thought he would make an ideal match for locally bred mares.

Visionaire had only 25 named foals in his first U.S. crop and stood at one of the smaller farms in Kentucky where he was not promoted very well. Irwin wanted to stand a horse in South Africa that he thought would produce straight-legged foals that he could breed to his own mares.

“I don’t like overpaying for classy but sometimes unreliable stallions that produce foals with front legs that are not consistently correct enough. The reason I chose Visionaire is that he is tall, his front limbs are perfect, he has a lot of bone, he was fast enough to sprint with the best and yet he easily got a middle distance around turns in America,” he once commented.

In Heaps Of Fun, Visionaire appears to have produced a potential star.  S’Manga Khumalo had no hesitation in taking the filly to the front ahead of hot favourite Negroamaro. The two fought a ding-dong battle up the long Turffontein straight with Heaps Of Fun finding more with every stride. This was the first leg of the Wilgerbosdrift Triple Tiara and the evidence of Saturday’s showing the 1800m of the Fillies Classic will be well within her compass.

Bred by Summerhill out of the one-time winning Northern Guest mare, Dream Starling she was a R200 000 purchase at the 2014 CTS Johannesburg Ready To Run sale.

Michael Azzie and his stalwart owners Adriaan and Rika van Vuuren had a red letter day on Saturday with Abashiri winning the Gr 2 Betting World Gauteng Guineas and their Australian import Aussie Austin winning the second. Aussie Austin is by another of Irwin’s stallions, Breeders Cup Juvenile winner Pluck who stands at The Vinery Stud in Australia.

A son of prolific sire More Than Ready, Pluck is out of the superbly bred but ill-fated mare Secret Heart. A daughter of Fort Wood, Secret Heart has a super South African pedigree and is closely related to London News.

By Andrew Harrison

The Michael Roberts-trained six-year-old Victory Moon gelding Muscatt became the second horse in two weeks to break a Scottsville course record down the straight on Sunday. Muscatt, who carried an actual 54,5kg due to the 4kg claim of apprentice Calvin Habib, lowered the 1000m course record to 55,81 seconds. The previous holder was the Dennis Drier-trained Equus Champion Sprinter Captain Of All, who recorded 55,96 when carrying a welter 61,5kg on March 29 last year.

Muscatt, who was bred by Milkwood Stud, is an impressive specimen who weighed in at 545kg for Sunday’s race. He displayed high cruising speed from his draw of six and had soon drifted across to join the pacemaker Tonto, who jumped from the number one draw. When challenged by the favourite Beloved Country, Muscatt kicked away under the hands in impressive style and Habib only had to give him a couple of backhanders to keep the talented Mark Dixon-trained London Call at bay by 3,5 lengths. He beat third-placed Sheik’s Brashee, who finished third in last years’s Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint, by six lengths.

Muscatt (Nkosi Hlophe)

Muscatt has big, flat feet and relished the forgiving underfoot conditions, with the penetrometer reading at an official 24.

He has always had huge potential and showed it from day one of his career, winning his opening two races over 1000m and 1200m at Fairview for his first trainer Gavin Smith by 12,25 lengths and 5,5 lengths respectively.

However, his feet have given him plenty of problems, so Roberts and his farrier Dom Finnis have done wonders to bring him back to his best at this relatively advanced age. The process was begun by putting him in a grass paddock for a month upon arrival at the yard. His first run for Roberts was on January 3 and he was beaten 0,25 lengths by Beloved Country over the Scottsville 1000m. Muscatt was 3kg better off with Beloved Country on Sunday, if the 4kg claim of Habib is included, and Roberts was confident of reversing the form. The big horse duly did so, slamming her by 6,3 lengths.

Muscatt had one race in between and ran way below par over 1200m at Greyville.

Roberts admitted yesterday (Monday) it appears 1000m is his best trip, but looking at his record believes he is better down the straight than around the turn.

Therefore his target will be the Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint over 1200m on the first Saturday of June.

The Tony Rivalland-trained four-year-old Miesque’s Approval gelding Humidor, bred by Backworth Stud, broke the Scottsville 1200m course record when carrying 55,5kg  on February 14, lowering the 67 second time of Kildonan (carrying 57,5kg in the Golden Horse Casino Sprint of 2007) to 66,98 seconds.

By David Thiselton

Abashiri has pulled up well from his emphatic victory in the Gr 2 Betting World Gauteng Guineas and trainer Mike Azzie’s only further comment was “He has spoken.”

This is in line with his new policy stated before Saturday’s race, “I am not talking to the media or Tellytrack. Usually I’m the one who does all the talking and it lands me in trouble so this time I’m going to let the horse do the talking.”

Abashiri, a Lammerskraal-bred gelding by Go Deputy, did the talking alright. Jockey Karl Zechner’s strength suits him, as he is a laid back horse and was off the bit early in the straight.

Abashiri (Nkosi Hlophe)

He had earlier found the perfect spot in the running, on the rail within striking distance.

Zechner’s strong driving got him into top gear and from then onward nobody could live with the big bay’s acceleration coupled with his giant stride.

It is no surprise upon studying his pedigree to see he is a close relative of the 2003 Equus Horse Of The Year Yard-Arm (his dam is a half-sister to Yard-Arm) because like the latter he has a giant of a stride.

Abashiri was a genuine Triple Crown contender before Saturday’s race, which was always going to be his toughest hurdle, being a touch sharp for him.

Go Deputy has become unfashionable and only covered two mares last season, both of them Lammerskraal-owned.

This horse might see him back in favour.

A frightening fact is Go Deputy’s progeny improve markedly with age and most only come into their own as four-year-olds.

Abashiri was purchased for R400,000 at the National yearling Sales and the most touching moment of his victory was to witness the excitement of one of the biggest spending couples at the South African Sales, Adriaan and Rika van Vuuren.

Their passion for the game and for their horses was clear for all to see and this one has the potential to take them higher and higher.

By David Thiselton

National Champion Trainer Sean Tarry clinched a double in the Gr 2 Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas on Saturday when Heaps Of Fun crossed the line first under a top class ride by S’Manga Khumalo. The yard won the race last year with Siren’s Call, who subsequently went within a stride of landing the Triple Tiara.

Tarry is not certain Heaps Of Fun, a Summerhill-bred filly from the first crop of Visionaire, will go the 2450m Wilgerbosdrift SA Oaks trip.

However, he believed she would be looking for the 1800m of the Gr 1 Wilgersbodrift SA Fillies Classic.

Heaps Of Fun dictated at a slow pace on Saturday under a perfectly judged ride and was able to stave off Negroamaro throughout the length of the straight to win by 0,9 lengths.

Sean Tarry

Owner Nchakha Moloi was away in Australia and was overjoyed to be awoken by a phonecall from Tarry. Tarry was introduced to Moloi by Summerhill’s Mick Goss. Moloi’s first horse in the yard was a share in a Summerhill-owned and bred horse. Since then he has added to his interest and Tarry praised him in the winner’s enclosure as an understanding owner. Moloi reaped the rewards on Saturday and is unlikely to miss out on the Classic next month, which is the second step towards the Triple Tiara.

Tarry will still have a big runner in the SA Oaks regardless, because Witchcraft has “always been our Oaks horse.” This Kahal filly is also bred by Summerhill and won a MR 74 Handicap for fillies and mares on Saturday by an emphatic 2,6 lengths under Khumalo.

Tarry said yesterday (Sunday) Heaps Of Fun’s 4,25 length second place finish in the Gr 3 Fillies Mile on SANSUI Summer Cup day had given him hope, because she still had “strengthening” to do.

Her comeback run on January 16 over 1160m in the Listed Swallow Stakes, where she finished a head second, had then “excited” him.

The only “surprise” of her career to date was next up and this was caused by how badly she ran, finishing 7,9 lengths back in the Three Troikas Stakes over 1450m, beaten 7,7 lengths by Negroamaro.

However, there were genuine excuse because she had been widely drawn, she had got her tongue over the bit and was later scoped and found to “have mucous”.

Tarry hoped ahead of Saturday her increased strength could take her two or three lengths closer to Negroamaro, as long as it excluded the factors which had blighted her Three Troikas run.

In the pre-race discussion he had asked Khumalo to “commit” from his good draw of six and added, “Don’t panic if you find yourself in front. If she pricks her ears around the turn she’s a big runner.” The plan worked to perfection.

• Racegoer’s Brendan Pather was probably the only pundit on the ball for Saturday’s Gauteng Fillies Guineas and tipped Heaps Of Fun, who landed odds of 20/1, in the Mercury and Cape Times.

By David Thiselton

Cape Town racing has been shocked by the decision to axe tomorrow’s Durbanville meeting – handing over R620 000 in stakes to Port Elizabeth – but, more particularly, by the fear that this could be just the beginning.

The decision was taken after entries of 160 produced just 54 acceptors. The two 2 000m races had nine and ten runners but each of the other six had only between five and seven. A hastily arranged Fairview polytrack substitute produced 95 declarations.

“I think it’s a crisis,” said Tellytrack presenter and former trainer Stan Elley, echoing the view of many. “We’ve got to do something or Phumelela will cut more meetings. A lot of people’s livelihoods are at stake here.”

Kenilworth Aerial view

Elley, a member of what is effectively a local programmes committee for more than half his 41 years as a trainer, believes the problem lies with the big yards (he estimates that the top half dozen have 80-85% of the horses) often being reluctant to run their clients’ horses against each other for fear of upsetting owners.

He said: “Trainers have got to wake up. Owners have too as well and spread their horses around more while I think there should be a limit on the number of horses each trainer is allowed.

“You cannot do anything about the trainers that have their own yards but you can with the rest. It has been done in PE and I believe in Durban too.”

Last September Phumelela and Kenilworth Racing warned trainers that fixtures would be dropped and stakes reduced if the average field did not increase from ten to 12 (the minimum necessary to generate decent betting turnover). Yet this month only six of the 62 races produced 12 or more runners.

Dean Kannemeyer is one of the big trainers involved and he said: “They tell me that I am not having enough runners and they are putting me under pressure but I have moved 30 of my horses to Durban.

“I understand the need for runners but there is something wrong somewhere in Cape Town. I see meetings here with 150-160 entries but in Durban they can have as many as 700.

“What is needed is for somebody to sit down with me (and other trainers), ask how many horses I’ve got, where I want to run them and over what distances in a coming three-month period rather than being told you’ve got so many rated 70-80 etc.”

Eric Sands, a former member of the programmes committee, made the point that in February many Cape trainers want to give their horses a break after a busy summer season while most two-year-olds based here do not race until the rains come to avoid getting sore shins on the firm ground.

He added: “I am not saying that the trainers are blameless – they are not – but the programmes are drawn up only twice a year, one for five months and the other for seven, and they are done two to three months in advance which means that a horse can be running in a programme prepared ten months earlier. It should be done every three months and from a box-by-box census to make it relevant.”

Kenilworth Racing issued a press release last Friday saying, inter alia: “A number of trainers have not stepped up to the plate… the last resort is to reduce the number of racemeetings… recently a census was completed and the winter programme (April-August) is based on the latest facts.”

By Michael Clower