A smart, competitive field of 16 will face the starter for the R350 000, Grade 2 Betting World 1900 at Greyville Racecourse on May 15 with all but two of the 17 runners carded being nominees for the Vodacom Durban July.
Trainer Mike Azzie’s gallant galloper Brooks-Club and the four-year-old Dynasty gelding It Is Written from the Dean Kannemeyer yard are the two that at this stage have no July aspirations but Kannemeyer has two other contenders in Power King and Solar Star that command the utmost respect for the May 15 1 900m encounter.
The field for the Betting World 1900 is headed by the Mike Bass-trained Jet Master gelding Helderberg Blue that has drawn well at three and boasts places in the Peninsula Handicap and the J&B Met. He has long been highly rated by the stable and will be one of the shorter-priced runners in the field.
Justin Snaith’s Jet Master gelding Jet Explorer has recovered well from his horrific accident at Clairwood last season and showed that when running fourth to Futura in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate. He has had one outing, in a pinnacle stakes race over 1 600m, since arriving in KwaZulu-Natal and is sure to have come on from that outing.
Snaith’s other runner, the Dynasty gelding Dynamic, beat Helderberg Blue at level weights in the Cape and impressed in his local debut when a close second to Polar Star in the Sledgehammer. He is drawn wide which will not improve his chances but he looks a big runner.
With a good draw at six, the Geoff Woodruff-trained Killua Castle has had moderate form since winning the London News and running second to Louis The King in the Summer Cup but he is a classy individual at his best and could run well here.
Power King was second to Arion in the Peninsula Handicap and a close second in a Cape feature before coming to the East Coast where he ran out a very easy winner of a pinnacle stakes event over 1 400m. He and stable companion Solar Star that has won both his starts in the region since arriving will be strongly fancied to feature in the result.
As a two-year-old the Mike De Kock entry Jayyed showed tremendous potential when second in the Premier’s Champion Stakes and in the Godolphin Barb Stakes before failing in the Dingaans. He bounced back to win a sprint at the Vaal and most recently was never a factor in the KRA Guineas.
Yet another son of Dynasty is from the Brett Crawford yard in the form of four-year-old De Kock. He has finished in the money in seven of his 11 starts with three wins to his credit but his full potential, as envisaged by the stable, is yet to be revealed.
Stan Elley fields Punta Arenas and yet another son of Dynasty, Dynastic Power. The former is a gallant six-year-old battler that can certainly run into the money at his best while Dynastic Power has shown a fair degree of ability with placings in his last four starts over distances from 1 400m to 2 800m.
The “miracle” horse from the Paul Lafferty stable, Double Clutch (Pictured), once at death’s door, has won four of his last five starts, the most recent in the East Coast Handicap. This is his favourite distance and although drawn wide could add another good run to his portfolio.
The six-time winner Bold Inspiration from the Charles Laird stable is the ride of Anton Marcus and his win in the Michaelmas Handicap over the course and distance and his pinnacle stakes win before that on the poly make him a big player when factoring in the inside draw and the Marcus talent.
Whiteline Fever for Sean Tarry can never be ignored and the Paul Gadsby trained Candy Moon make up the balance of the field and the latter, with placings in feature races in his last four starts, mark him as a runner not to be treated lightly.
Mountain Master is the reserve runner with a fourth in the London News his only recent high point. This trip is right up his street and he could make his presence felt if getting a run.
By Richard McMillan – Gold Circle
