The Mike Miller-trained Walls Of Dubrovnik will make an audacious last gasp attempt to land a R500,000 bonus by travelling down to Port Elizabeth to run in the Listed Champion Juvenile Cup over 1400m on the Fairview turf on Friday.

When the new Hemel ‘n Aarde stallion Fencing Master arrived in South Africa in 2016 stallion manager David Allan of David Allan Bloodlines announced a R1-million bonus to be potentially distributed among the three best two-year-olds conceived by this stallion in his first covering season.

UK-based Colin Bird owns Fencing Master and Allan announced that in support of the British-bred stallion the owner, trainer and breeder of his three best black type two-year-olds conceived in 2016 would receive respective bonuses of R500,000, R300,000 and R200,000.

On first interpretation it seems the money will be split between owner, trainer and breeder.

Friday is officially the last day of the season, so the Champion Juvenile Cup has allowed the two-year-old colt an eleventh hour opportunity to land the bonus.

Walls Of Dubrovnik finished a strong-finishing third in the KZN Yearling Sale Million over 1300m at the Vodacom Durban July meeting on Saturday. Unfortunately, that race is Non-Black Type so did not qualify him for the bonus.

That was his second run in the famous Gujadhur family colours. The Gujadhurs of Mauritius own one of the oldest racing stables in the world and are viewed virtually as royalty by the island’s passionate racing public.

Walls Of Dubrovnik went within 1,4 lengths of claiming the R500,000 cheque on June 13 when finishing fourth in the Grade 3 Godolphin Barb Stakes over 1100m. He would have gained black type with a third-place finish.

He was subsequently sold to the Gujadhurs.

Mike Miller’s son and assistant, Sterling, said the colt had come out of his race on Saturday well.

He added, “The 1400m is a bit of a stretch but he should get it if ridden correctly. On Saturday he came from near last to run third.”

He does have a tough draw of eight out of ten to overcome and will be ridden by Shadley Fortune.

Walls Of Dubrovnik is on the float today and will be taken care of in PE by Gavin Smith.

In other Miller yard news blinkers will be tried on their good looking Oratorio colt Royal Exhibit, who was a bit detached in the running of the Grade 2 Durban Golden Horseshoe over 1400m on Saturday before running on to be beaten 4,15 lengths into ninth. His targets will be a maiden and then the Grade 1 Premier’s Champions Stakes over 1600m on Gold Cup day.

By David Thiselton

The Glen Kotzen-trained Temple Grafin spoilt what was being viewed as a tiebreaker for the Equus Older Female award by winning the Grade 1 weight for age Jonsson Workwear Garden Province Stakes over 1600m at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday and she is now in line for the award herself.

Keagan de Melo gave her a fine ride to register his 100th winner of the season and his first career Grade 1 victory.

The Duke Of Marmalade filly joined Queen Supreme, Clouds Unfold, Ronnie’s Candy and Celtic Sea as the fifth individual Grade 1 winner of the season in the older female category.

Kotzen has now won the Garden Province three times. His previous victories were with Lady Windermere in 2009 and Princess Victoria in 2012.

Temple Grafin becomes the first South African-bred Grade 1 winner of the Drakenstein Stud-based Duke Of Marmalade and his fifth Grade 1 winner worldwide.

De Melo is lying third on the national jockeys log but is more than a 100 winners behind the runaway leader Warren Kennedy.

He first broke through the 100 winner barrier in the 2016/2017 season and this will be the third time he has achieved the feat.

For statistical purposes he will not be able to surpass his record of 114 winners achieved in the 2017/2018 as the season officially ends on Friday. However, he would no doubt have surpassed it had the season not effectively been shortened by more than two months. His season’s strike rate of 14,27% is the highest he has achieved to date.

De Melo has been viewed as a potential top echelon rider for a long time and having broken the Grade 1 ice the floodgates could open for the talented 26-year-old.

He was awarded the SA Champions Seasons ride of the season last year at the KZN Racing Awards and might be in line for it again after his performance on Temple Grafin on Saturday.

The 40/1 shot jumped well from draw six but was hampered by Celtic Sea, who made a bee line for the rail from draw seven. De Melo was consequently caught wide for a bit but kept his mount settled before slotting in to a midfield position. He brought her down the centre in the straight and under a vigorous ride the four-year-old found the extra to overtake both Pretty Young Thing and Celtic Sea.

Temple Grafin was sold to Laurence Wernars after her third place finish in the Majorca. Wernars has been an owner for about three decades and this was his third Grade 1 win following Hero’s Honour and Mighty High, who respectively won the SA Derby and Allan Robertson in 2018.

Temple Grafin was bred by Mrs Fran Crowe.

It will be difficult to separate the quintet of Grade 1 winners for the Equus award.

Clouds Unfold won the Grade 1 wfa Bidvest Majorca Stakes over 1600m, beating Celtic Sea by 0,3 lengths and third-placed Temple Grafin by 1,55 lengths. Her best other achievements in the season have been a fourth place finish in the slow run Grade 1 wfa Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge over 1600m against the boys and a 2,5 length second at level weights to Celtic Sea in the Grade 2 Sceptre Stakes over 1200m, a race in which Temple Grafin finished a 9,2 length eleventh. Clouds Unfold ran a disappointing 3,55 length eighth from a wide draw in the Garden Province on Saturday.

Celtic Sea, on top of her Grade 2 win and Grade 1 second mentioned above, also won the Grade 1 SA Fillies Sprint over 1200m and finished second in the Garden Province.

Ronnie’s Candy has won both the Grade 1 wfa HSH Princess Charlene Empress Club Stakes and the Grade 2 Ipi Tombe Challenge, both over 1600m, and finished a 4,25 length second to Queen Supreme in the Grade 3 Yellowwood Handicap over 1800m when giving the latter 7,5kg. She finished sixth in the Garden Province, beaten 3,45 lengths.

Queen Supreme, who was born in the Northern Hemisphere meaning she is six months younger than her contemporaries, has also won the Grade 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes over 1800m, finished second against the boys in the Grade 1 wfa HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes over 1600m, third in the Empress Club Stakes and fourth against the boys in the Summer Cup.

Temple Grafin’s best other performance, besides her Grade 1 win and Grade 1 third, was fourth in the Grade 3 Poinsettia Stakes.

The respective merit ratings of the quintet are Celtic Sea 126, Clouds Unfold 126 and Queen Supreme 122, while Temple Grafin and Ronnie’s Candy went into the Garden Province rated 118 and 117 respectively. Temple Grafin will undoubtedly be adjusted upward.

By David Thiselton

The Piet Steyn-trained Potala Palace colt Katak won the Grade 3 Pocket Power Stakes over 2400m at Kenilworth today to complete the Cape Winter Series triple crown under Bernard Fayd’herbe. 

History repeated itself as Pocket Power himself won the Winter series triple crown in the same Marsh Shirtliff colours that Katak carries and he was also ridden by Fayd’herbe. 

Fayd’herbe has in fact ridden the winter series triple crown three times as he did it with African Night Sky too. 

Katak is now unbeaten in five starts. 

Steyn confirmed he was still immature so he should continue to blossom. 

The Sun Met and Vodacom Durban July will be natural targets, like they were with Pocket Power, although big monetary offers from overseas will probably come in and will be hard to turn down.

By David Thiselton

Image: Katak (Liesl King)

Justin Snaith landed his fifth Vodacom Durban July and Richard Fourie his third at Hollywoodbets Greyville today as Belgarion fended off the country’s top three-year-old Got The Greenlight to win in the fastest time since the track was narrowed in 2014.

Belgarion’s record-seeking stablemate Do It Again finished third, the highest finish of the five horses in history who have attempted three wins in the big race.

Snaith is the ultimate professional and his stable jockey Fourie would have known that Belgarion’s stablemate Silvano’s Pride, who was the expected pacemaker, was going to go like the clappers in front. 

Belgarion’s wide draw of 17 was thus easily nullified by the horse simply being dropped out. 

The pace was also fast enough for him to use his big stride. 

However, the connections of the favourite Rainbow Bridge had to guess how quick it was going to be up front and their decision to go handy from a low draw did them no favours in retrospect. 

Rainbow Bridge found himself in front in the straight way too soon after Silvano’s Pride and second-in-the-running Twist Of Fate had understandably fallen away after some of the quickest fractions set in July history.

Statistician Jay August measured Silvano’s Pride going through the first 1200m in a tearaway 69.4 seconds and the group  behind her, which included Rainbow Bridge, went through in 70.6 seconds, which is the fastest July so far at that point for the chasing pack.

Handicapping pundits were proved correct by Belgarion’s win. A condition of the WSB 1900 limited the raise he was allowed to be given for winning that race to six points. The handicappers thus had to give him a 119 merit rating despite having analysed him to have run to a 122.

He thus carried 1kg less than he would have and on paper that was the difference between victory and a head defeat by the runner up Got The Greenlight. 

The three-year-olds defied a number of pundits who had written them off. 

Got The Greenlight was running 3kg under sufferance on official merit ratings but there were a few who still fancied him as he was a three time Grade 1 winner whose running style suggested he only did enough to win. 

However, the fourth place finish of the Grade 1 Cape Derby winner Golden Ducat, who was 4,5kg under sufferance, suggested the crop might be a tad better than had been thought.

Snaith is just two July wins behind the record of seven set by the legendary Syd Laird and as a relatively young man he has plenty of time to surpass it. 

It was a deserved win for owners Alec and the Honourable Gillian Foster. The former had a fine sporting day as his beloved England cricket team were not in a strong position at the beginning of the day against the West Indies but by stumps were in command. 

Belgarion was bred by Alec too. 

Silvano’s Pride was chased to the front from the off and soon had a big lead. 

The field were stretched out in the running. 

The favourite Rainbow Bridge was in a handy position, while Do It Again was in the back half and was being trailed by Got The Greenlight who in turn was being followed by Belgarion. 

The latter must have been about 20 lengths off the leader at the halfway mark. 

Owner and breeding doyen Mike Rattray has dreamed of winning the July his whole life and half way down the straight he must have been willing the line closer as his red and white colours were lying first and second, Rainbow Bridge in front and Golden Ducat on his quarter. 

However, the Do It Again treble dream then began to look more likely as he moved up dangerously. 

The latter possibility was short-lived though because it became clear that the pair on the outside, Belgarion and Got The Greenlight were going best of all. 

Belgarion won full of running by 0,90 lengths in a time of 132,4 seconds, the fourth fastest time since the distance was upped to 2200m in 1970.

The Joey Soma-trained Got The Greenlight stayed on well to beat Do It Again by a head. 

The latter was a length clear of the Eric Sands-trained Golden Ducat, who just held on to fourth by a short head from the gallant seven-year-old, the Dean Kannemeyer-trained It’s My Turn. The latter finished fourth in the July as a three-year-old.

Golden Ducat’s stable mate Rainbow Bridge, who was last year’s runner up, finished a disappointing sixth, 0,80 lengths behind It’s My Turn. 

By David Thiselton

The Gavin van Zyl-trained Gabor, who was last season’s Equus Champion two-year-old filly, has been retired and will stand at her owners’ and breeders’ Drakenstein Stud farm. 

She put in her final fast work for Saturday’s Grade 1 Jonsson Workwear Garden Province Stakes yesterday and once again disappointed.

Van Zyl said due to one or two niggles she had not been able to find the form of her two-year-old season and it had thus been decided to retire her rather than to squeeze more out of an already champion filly.

The champion status she achieved was remarkable considering her first racecourse appearance was on May 12 last year in a Barrier Trial.

She won her debut over 1000m on the poly 17 days later and followed that with a running on third from a wide draw in the Grade 2 Zulu Kingdom Explorer Golden Slipper over 1400m.

In her next start she won the Thekwini Stakes over 1600m in fine style from a good draw and thus provided jockey Warren Kennedy with his first ever Grade 1 winner.

She also provided her late sire Kingsbarns with his first Graded Stakes winner.

She only raced once this season, finishing unplaced in the Grade 2 Tibouchina, and so retires having earned R594,375. 

She is out of the twice winning Trippi mare Se Agabor.

By David Thiselton