Dennis Drier will tomorrow be going for his seventh Grade 1 Golden Horse Medallion win since 2010 and his eighth overall and he has a strong coupling this year in Tempting Fate and Pray For Rain.
Later in this Hollywoodbets Festival of Speed meeting he has a chance of winning the Grade 1 Golden Horse Sprint with Cartel Captain.
Tempting Fate by Master Of My Fate is out of the speedy Drier-trained filly Miss October whose Trippi daughter Spring Break ran a 4,20 length eighth against the boys in last years Medallion before going on to finish a close second in the Umkhomazi Stakes over this same 1200m distance at Hollywoodbets Greyville. Tempting Fate is unbeaten in two starts and last time out showed good pace and a strong kick to win the Grade 3 Godolphin Barb Stakes over 1100m at Hollywoodbets Scottsville in a time 0,30 seconds quicker than the Strelitzia on the same day. His stablemate Pray For Rain by Soft Falling Rain was a 0,60 length second at level weights after playing up at the start.
Drier said, “Both came out of that last race superbly and I couldn’t be happier with them going into this race.”
He put Pray For Rain’s antics at the start down to ring rustiness.
He added, “Tempting Fate is the choice on what they have shown.”
However, he concluded by saying they were two-year-olds so it was difficult to say and they would show what they were made of in the race.
The pair face a strong field and are priced up as 7/2 second favourite and 16/1 with Track And Ball. The favourite Erik The Red is at 23/10.
Tempting Fate is ridden by stable jockey Sean Veale from draw 12 and Pray For Rain has Ant Mgudlwa up from draw one.
Cartel Captain has come into his own this season. Drier said he was in a “tough” renewal of the Golden Horse Sprint but on the other hand had a light weight “along with most of the field.” He said he also could not be happier with his preparation. He has Sean Veale up from draw eight.
Vaughan Marshall has two runners in the Medallion, Joseph Barry and No Laying Up.
Both have been at Summerveld since March.
He said Joseph Barry had come on a lot from his third place finish in the Godolphin Barb and he believed he could “definitely” reverse form with Tempting Fate and Pray For Rain.
He agreed No Laying Up would be suited to Hollywoodbets Scottsville based on his debut win over the tough Kenilworth 1000m when showing good pace and then fending off the horse he became involved in a dual with to win cosily. However, No Laying Up suffered a “hiccup” after arriving at Summerveld and is a “bit behind” Joseph Barry. Nevertheless, Marshall said he had been doing very well and could finish in the frame.
Joseph Barry has Anton Marcus up from draw eleven and it looks likely that Keagan de Melo will get the ride on No Laying Up, who jumps from draw six.
Gareth van Zyl has a chance of landing his first Grade 1 in the Allan Robertson with the second favourite Vernichey. He said he had been surprised how green she had been last time when winning the Strelitzia over 1100m at Hollywoodbets Scottsville as he had regarded her as a “forward” filly. He added she had come on a lot from the run but acknowledged that most of the opposition would also have improved.
Vernichey has a good action which is suitable for the tough Hollywoodbets Scottsville course and the most pleasing aspect of her Stelitzia win was that she had come from off the pace to win going away.
Van Zyl mentioned the Ashley Fortune-trained favourite Winter Smoke as the one he had been hearing a lot about.
Warren Kennedy retains the ride on Vernichey who is drawn ten.
Van Zyl runs the biggest outsider Princekresh in the Medallion. He will have to do a lot to reverse a 4,75 length defeat by Tempting Fate in the Godolphin Barb. Van Zyl said fitting blinkers could help his cause but admitted he would be very happy if he just made the frame.
Donovan Dillon rides from draw seven.
By David Thiselton
