Follow Fortune – but not blindly. That’s the advice for Durbanville today when the 2008/09 champion rides in six of the eight races.
Andrew Fortune may be only seven months short of his 50th birthday but he is riding out of his skin at the moment and he started the week 20 winners clear of his nearest pursuers, Richard Fourie and Anthony Delpech.
Four of his six mounts are favourites and he kicks off with Count Henry who gave away an almost impossible amount of ground at the off on debut here last month but showed immense promise by running on to take third of 13 in the manner of a certain future winner.
But don’t be tempted by too short a price – he opened at 17-10 with World Sports Betting on Monday and was a fraction tighter yesterday – because there are others in the race with superior form, notably Zeb, Oh Behave and Pillar Of Hercules despite the latter’s disappointing second run when he started second favourite. “The only excuse we can offer is that the ground was very wet that day,” says Joey Ramsden’s assistant Ricardo Sobotker. “But he is working well.”
King Of The Rally in race three looks the weakest of the sextet and here 18-10 shot Icon King should make the most of stepping up to a mile with 11-10 favourite Gold Standard the obvious danger.
Craven 40 minutes later is the Fortune banker even though his 7-20 price is prohibitive. The money poured on him when he beat all except stable companion The Great One on debut last month. “The owner (Y.H. Yue) wanted Andrew that day too but he wasn’t available,” recalls Brett Crawford whose three-year-old maiden strength-in-depth is formidable, “and Craven is in good form.”
Carbon Offset won his maiden with Fortune in the irons here three weeks ago and the colt heads the market at 2-1 in the Itsarush.co.za Handicap over the same mile. But this is first time out of the maidens and, although he was not given a hard race to win, he didn’t exactly have a ton in hand and there is no real reason to think that the handicappers have underestimated him with a rating of 81. If you still want to back him, don’t go overboard.
The form book says that Ntombe could struggle to reverse the placings with Colour Magic and My Emblem in race seven but the Manna Fortune magic may be enough, particularly as Geoff Woodruff’s daughter Lucy has the Cape Town string in good form and 7-1 looks appealing.
Amazingly has everything going for her in the last except a dreadful draw. The question is whether the 28-10 favourite will be quick enough to overcome it. “I think so, yes,” answers Adam Marcus. “She has a lot of natural speed and she should enjoy Durbanville where Andrew is particularly good.”
A further plus is that Fortune rang for the ride. He has nothing in the first where Crawford’s 5-2 chance Scriptwriter may beat fellow once-raced Moon Bird who was favourite at 15-10 yesterday. Both were slowly away here last month.
Michael Clower
