Former stalwart Cape jockey Karl Neisius said he had not seen a three-year-old performance as good as Table Bay’s on Saturday for “a long time.”

Table Bay (Liesl King)

“To carry that weight and do what he did was a special achievement,” he said about the Joey Ramsden-trained Australian-bred colt’s exhilarating victory in the Gr 3 Drakenstein Vet Clinic Cape Classic over 1400m at Kenilworth under Anton Marcus.Neisius was sort after as a jockey not only for his race riding skills, but also due to his gifted judgement on the training tracks.

The latter asset included a good eye for a horse. Proof of this is that he is currently involved in a pin-hooking syndicate, which is enjoying success to date. The horses are usually bought at early year sales and then pin-hooked on the Ready To Run Sales.

Otherwise, Neisius is “enjoying his retirement”, although he is staying as close to the game as possible.

“I go racing, and to the track in the morning now and again, to keep my eye in. I will be going more now because this is the time of the year you can enjoy watching the good horses come out. I saw the Guineas winner on Saturday (Table Bay).”

He is currently cautious about ever becoming a trainer.

By David Thiselton