Summerveld maestro Dennis Drier has won many Gr 1 races in recent seasons but was still unable to contain his emotions after managing one of the best days of his career on Vodacom Durban July day on Saturday. He won both of the two-year-old Gr 1 events on the card and later added a first and third in a Non-Black type sprint.

He said, “You dream of winning races like this and this is unbelievable.”

The veteran trainer had two Gr 1 winners on a day for the first time at Scottsville earlier this year, so only appears to be getting better.

On Saturday his filly Chestnuts N Pearls provided the great Horse Chestnut with his first South African-bred Gr 1 winner and his second Gr 1 winner overall when sweeping through to land the Zulu Kingdom Explorer Golden Slipper over 1400m by 1,5 lengths under Sean Cormack.

Later his top class Seventh Rock colt Seventh Plain fought back in courageous fashion to get up by a short-head in the Gr 1 Durban Golden Horseshoe over 1400m under Anton Marcus.

Seventh Plain will likely be named Equus two-year-old male of the year as he also won the Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion and on Saturday he beat the Gr 1 SA Nursery winner Arabian Beat into third.

Chestnut N Pearls was bred by Nutfield Stud and is owned by Jaap van der Vendel’s Vendel Civils, Mark Currie and Mayseh Chetty. Currie, who was having his third Gr 1 winner, and Chetty were both on course to lead her in. Chetty has had 120 winners in his seven year ownership career, but this was his first Gr 1 success.

He said, “I’m very proud, it’s exciting to have a Gr 1 winner and on July day.” The filly was purchased at Bloodstock South Africa’s Emperor’s Palace Ready To Run Sale for R240,000 last year so will have a big money sales race to look forward to next year.

Drier had initially planned to put her away after her run in the Gr 1 Allan Robertson Championship over 1200m at Scottsville, but jockey Cormack had advised that the 1200m trip had simply been too short, and she had also had to come from an unfavourable high draw, so he recommended she run in the Slipper. His advice proved spot on. She now might even take her place in the Gr 1 Thekwini Stakes over 1600m on Super Saturday.

Drier hails from a famous racing dynasty, who were once labelled “The Sob Mob” by his Uncle Russell Laird (“When we win we cry, when we lose we smile”), so it was little surprise to see him in tears in the winner’s enclosure after the filly’s fluent win.

In the Golden Horseshoe the Dominic Zaki-trained Arabian Beat overcame a wide draw to lead from the off and looked to have an apparently under pressure Seventh Plain beaten 100m out. The danger looked to be the well supported Johan Janse van Vuuren-trained maiden Brazuca, who was flying on the inside. However Seventh Plain then suddenly found his big stride and surged through the centre to beat Brazuca by a short-head with Arabian Beat a head further back. Drier said, “He’s an absolutely amazing horse. Anton said he was very green. I didn’t think he could win half way down the straight, but that is what top horses are made of and top jockeys.”

Drier believes this big colt has a very bright future, so he will likely be put away and aimed at the Cape Summer Of Champions Season, although this will depend on owner Markus Jooste’s racing manager Derek Brugman.

Seventh Rock has had a Gr 1 winner in each of his first two crops, the first of them being Guiness who was also trained by Drier. Seventh Rock was trained by Drier’s cousin Charles Laird and owned by Markus Jooste and the latter also owns both Guiness and Seventh Plain. Seventh Plain was bred by Klawervlei Stud.

Later Drier won the eThekwini Sprint over 1200m on the poly with the classy three-year-old Var colt Generalissimo and his promising Trippi gelding Triptique flew up for third. The win confirmed a change in fortunes for owner Nick Jonsson, who had won an earlier race on the day having enjoyed a luckless Champions Season up until then. One of Generalissimo’s finest assets is his gatespeed and he had missed the break in the Gr 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint at Scottsville after standing in stalls for close to five minutes and later Jonsson’s three-year-old Justin Snaith-trained Jet Master gelding Ultimate Dollar had to be scratched from the start of the Gr 1 Daily News 2000 after kicking the back of the gate. Both horses won on Saturday. Generalissimo is now unbeaten in two starts on the poly and  Ultimate Dollar proved what a big runner he would have been in the Daily News by winning the Gr 3 tabGold 2200 in fine style from start to finish under S’Manga Khumalo. Jonsson owns Generalissimo in partnership with his father Benji and Ultimate Dollar in partnership with RD Hamilton’s Evanstan Investments.

Khumalo’s other winner on the day was aboard the Charles Laird-trained Resolution, who won her swansong on the poly before going to stud. Resolution’s part-owner Alesh Naidoo competed with Jonsson for owner of the day as he also owned the winner and third-placed horses in the KZN Yearling Sale Million, the Dennis Bosch-trained Clifton Stud-bred AP Answer gelding Cutting Edge and the Charles laird-trained Chosen Dash, and he also owns the Laird-trained Bold Inspiration, who finished second in a Listed event.

By David Thiselton