Andrew Harrison

Vaughan Marshall mostly gave last year’s Champions Season a miss due to a lack of ‘ammunition’ but he is back with a bang. Questioning fired a warning salvo and could well follow up in the Gr2 Independent On Saturday Drill Hall Stakes this coming Saturday but possibly more explosive was Rich Man’s World who was a stunning winner of the Gr3 Godolphin Barb Stakes at Hollywoodbets Scottsville yesterday.

The race was billed as a match between the two unbeaten colts Master Magician and Rich Man’s World but in the end it was a bloodless victory for Marshal’s colt.

It was a contest up until the 300m mark before Master Magician came under pressure with Richard Fourie sitting motionless as Tristan Godden got to work on his mount.

Godden’s efforts were all in vain as Rich Man’s World simply lengthened his stride to win with many lengths to spare. Master Magician was hardly disgraced in second with the balance of the field left bobbing in his wake but he was no match for the winner.

The Gr1 Golden Medallion must surely be on the agenda for Rich Man’s World and the red ink will already be behind his name should he take his place.

Earlier, Andrew Forune gave another masterclass of jockeyship as he got Justin Snaith filly Querari Dancer home in a nerveless display the Gr3 Strelitzia Stakes.

Seemingly hemmed in on all sides with little more than a furlong to run, Fortune slowly eased his filly out from behind a wall of horses, slipping up the inside rail to get home rather comfortably from Menagerie and Ferrari Flair.

It was a fine afternoon for Marshal as Vibe Check, a strapping son of Querari who arrived in KZN off two close-up finishes, reveled in the step up to 1400m. Sean Veale, who had been aboard all three of his Hollywoodbets Kenilworth starts, took no prisoners. Bouncing out from the widest gate, Vibe Check went to the lead in fluent fashion ahead of market rival One Pepper, but was not for the catching as he extended his lead to put five lengths of daylight between himself and Putthelightsout and One Pepper. Like Rich Man’s World, the next stop must surely be a crack at one of the big juvenile features.