Red Ray will have his first start since his Mercury Sprint win in July in the Khaya Stables Diadem Stakes at Kenilworth on January 14. Joey Ramsden reports that he will then go for the Betting World Cape Flying Championship a fortnight later.
The same two races are planned for both last season’s Cape Flying winner Gulf Storm and fourth-placed Tevez who justified 3-1 favouritism in last Saturday’s Southeaster Sprint.
Candice Bass-Robinson, who was landing her first treble, said: “The problem is that these races all come on top of each other but Tevez will probably run in both those two.”
Red Ray (Liesl King)
Gulf Storm ran far better than Saturday’s eighth place would suggest. He was beaten less than three and a half lengths, despite giving lumps of weight all round and being baulked just inside the final furlong.
Brett Crawford said: “It was only his second run back and it was very hard for him at the weights. It will be much nearer levels in the Diadem and that should make a big difference.”
Suggestions that Sergeant Hardy should also take his chance in the Cape Flying after the way he blitzed the opposition in the Need For Speed Sprint were dismissed by Justin Snaith who made it clear that he has more valuable fish to fry.
The former champion trainer, sending out his 90th winner of the season, said: “He goes for the CTS $500 000 1 200m race on the same card. He is an unbelievable horse, completely gone in the wind but so tough.”
Cape Fillies Guineas winner Just Sensual is the most notable absentee from the 18 entries for the Maine Chance Farms Paddock Stakes, particularly as half them are three-year-olds, and Ramsden said: “She will go for either the Klawervlei Majorca (Jan 28) or one of the two CTS $500 000 races that day.”
Interestingly Ramsden added that Table Bay will step up to 2 000m for his next run, the Investec Cape Derby, after being beaten into third when starting favourite for the Cape Guineas.
Mrs Bass-Robinson will run Nightingale as well as Silver Mountain in the Paddock despiteher doubts about the 1 800m trip for last year’s Cape Fillies Guineas winner – “On pedigree she should get it but her performances are better over shorter. Mind you, I don’t think Inara really stayed the Paddock distance but she got away with it.”
Seemingly the Milnerton trainer was hardly surprised that Marinaresco should be landed with a bad draw (14) in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate on Saturday week. “What’s new?” she said. “He and The Conglomerate are always having to start on the back foot.”
The pair were drawn widest of all when first and second in the Durban July, Marinaresco was drawn two off the outside when winning the Champions Cup and The Conglomerate 14 out of 19 when he was second in the Sansui Summer Cup.
Even so, World Sports Betting has installed Marinaresco as favourite at 11-10 and make last season’s winner Legal Eagle next best at 13-10. Other prices are 12-1 Whisky Baron, 14-1 The Conglomerate, 20-1 Captain America, French Navy, It’s My Turn, 25-1 St Tropez, 33-1 and upwards others.
By Michael Clower
