He said, “We went the Green Point route with Afrikaburn because it is weight for age and if he had run in the Selangor under the conditions he would have had to give weight to some of the best three-year-olds in the land. He was a top two-year-old and in his reappearance in the Matchem he only got going late and then took off, so I’ve put quarter cups (blinkers) on just to make him focus a bit more. He is in top shape and both he and Balance Sheet put up very pleasing gallops at Kenilworth. Neither of them over exert themselves at home. They have both got good temperaments.”

“Balance Sheet gets weight in the Selangor from Act Of War. It’s a pity it’s on the Old Course as he might take a while to get going, he will be better on the new course. I think he will stay nicely and the Derby could be his race.”

“Varlo is in tip top shape but it’s going to be very difficult from that draw especially for a horse with a question whether he stays 1400m and I also think it’s going to be a rough race. He is a sensible horse, he handled Durbanville well, but he’s going to need a lot of luck.”

Lightweight veteran Gerrit Schlechter rides Afrikaburn and stable jockey Karl Neisius rides the other pair.

Picture: Afrikaburn (Nkosi Hlophe)

Kotzen said about the Trippi filly Jeweller’s Joy, who has already won two races but is nevertheless the lowest merit rated horse (82) in the Ready To Run Stakes, “She is a progressive filly and gets better and better every week. She is not a tearaway at home and we are excited as she is one of the few horses in the race that has gone the trip and more, so will have no problem staying it. The draw should not be a worry as she came from off them last time.”

Jeweller’s Joy won her maiden on October 18 over 1300m at Durbanville and two weeks later she downed the useful Gr 2 placed older mare Earth’s Orbit in a MR 76 fillies and mares handicap over 1600m at Kenilworth. She didn’t appear to let herself down in that one length win over 1600m and Kotzen confirmed, “She had a ton in hand at the line. It is quite hard for a three-year-old to beat older horses first time out of the maidens, so I was proud of her.”

Kotzen gives her a definite “shout”. He said, “It is very open but in my opinion three horses, Belong To Me, Alexis  and Jeweller’s Joy, will fill three of the first four places and you can choose any of the rest for the other placing. Belong To Me ran a solid fourth behind Harry’s Son over this trip at Turffontein and that puts him in the picture. Alexis looks really smart and will have no problem with the trip on pedigree.” Jeweller’s Joy has a tricky draw of eleven.

Kotzen thinks highly of his three-year-old Western Winter colt Light The Lights and his program for the season is mirroring the one he gave to the probable best horse he has ever trained, the Vodacom Durban July winner Big City Life. Like Big City Life, Light The Lights won the Listed RA Stakes over 1600m at Fairview in the October of his three-year-old year. He then burst into the public eye when running second to the great Pocket Power in the Green Point Stakes.

Kotzen said, “We have always seen Light The Lights as a July horse. Running in the Green Point he will be up against horses that are coming off long layoffs which will make them vulnerable, as opposed to The Selangor which is contested by three-year-olds that are tuned up. He was immature as a two-year-old and will only really come into his own next winter. He is a really smart horse and is a half-brother to In The Fast Lane so has a lot of potential and could still be anything.”

Light The Lights took a bad bump in the RA Stakes half-way down the straight, which a lot of horses would not have recovered from. However, after finding his balance he showed an exceptional turn of foot, although he was admittedly very well weighted under the conditions of the event.

He will be carrying a lightweight of 53kg on Saturday in the weight for age race as the three-year-olds receive 7kg from older males at this time of the year over this distance.  Furthermore, he is drawn in pole position which should allow him to settle nicely and use that superb turn of foot in the straight.

Of his other runners on the day, Kotzen regards his Silvano filly Goldandsilver as having a good chance in the last race, a MR 75 handicap for fillies and mares over 1200m.  All three of the horses mentioned will be ridden by stable jockey Greg Cheyne, who was the same rider that drove Big City Life to his famous July win in 2009 (pictured).

Picture: Big City Life (Nkosi Hlophe)

Shimmering Leaves is one of three horses in the race that has had  eight runs or more, so at first sight she looks quite exposed. However, in her three-year-old career she has raced only twice and performed with noteworthy merit on both occasions.

In her reappearance on October 1 she was slow away from a wide draw in a MR 68 Handicap over 1000m at Durbanville against older fillies and mares, running off a merit rating of 80. She ran on well from near the back to finish only 1,5 lengths back in second to House Of Lorraine. However, it was in her next start over the 1400m course and distance of Saturday’s big race that she showed she could be a fair sort as she finished third in a Progress Plate and was only 0,75 lengths behind the promising 101 merit rated filly Grey Light. She also had the Listed winner and Gr 2 placed four-year-old Star Jet behind her.

There is only one horse in Saturday’s field, Belong To Me, who is merit rated over 100, so on paper Shimmering Leaves has a chance. Sands had put her in that Progress Plate last time because he felt she had already done enough to qualify and she then went and proved that she could well be better than her 83 merit rating. Furthermore, in her last start as a two-year-old she finished just 6,75 lengths behind one of the best males in the land, Act Of War, at weight for age terms. She was at one stage leading in the straight in that race before being swamped, so the 1400m trip is probably more to her liking.

Sands said, “She is well in herself and her preparation has gone well. She has run a very good race already last time out and I would like to think she has improved from that outing. She is a decent filly and really fights.”

As a versatile type in terms of where she is positioned in the running, her perfect draw of four will give her several options. Greg Behr rides and while she probably won’t be one of the fancied horses in the betting she could run into the money.

Act Of War has laid claim along with the KZN horse Harry’s Son to being the best three-year-old male in the land. He beat the highly regarded MLJet last time out in the Cape Classic over 1400m despite conceding 4kg and has already proved he stays the Selangor Cup distance. Ramsden said the colt was very well, had been working well and his preparation had gone smoothly.

He added, “MLJet will be a tough nut to crack and so will Generalissimo, but we’re looking forward to a good race.” Piere Strydom replaces the injured Anton Marcus aboard the Dynasty colt and they jump from draw 6 in the seven horse field.

Ramsden has three other runners in the race, Kingvoldt, Catkin and Cotton Hill.

Western Winter colt Kingvoldt (pictured) was shaping up to be something special after three comfortable wins as a two-year-old, but he then ran dismally in the Langerman. They discovered that he was haemo-concentrating and have done everything they could for him since, but Ramsden said, “However, that didn’t stop him running below par again last time, so it was back to the drawing board. We can only hope that he will be back to his best on Saturday.”

Ramsden said about Horse Chestnut colt Catkin, who ran a touch disappointingly last week, and Antonius Pius colt Cotton Hill, “Catkin’s white blood cell count was up and if we can’t get it down in time he probably won’t run. Cotton Hill, we just trying him to see how things go.”

Brutal Force is a full brother to the top class Red Ray and is officially the highest price horse to ever be sold on public auction in South Africa at R4,5 million. He was pin-hooked on that sale with the obvious aim being that he could qualify for Saturday’s race and he was duly bought back by Markus Jooste. Interestingly, Ramsden has removed the blinkers which were applied for his third outing over 1200m, having finished runner up over 1200m and 1300m respectively in his previous runs.

He said, “I put the blinkers on just to sharpen him up because I couldn’t afford any mistakes in that race.” Comparing him to Red Ray, he said, “They are totally different horses and their only similarity is their gorgeous natures, they have hearts of gold. I think Brutal Force will probably stay further than Red Ray.”

He continued, “I think Brutal Force is good enough to win, but a lot of luck and skill is going to be required from that draw of 12. He is huge so will need big gaps to open, although if the other horses knew he was coming they would probably move out of the way as there is 600kg of him!” Bernard Fayd’Herbe has ridden Brutal Force before and replaces Marcus.

Ramsden runs Coltrane and Manx Missile in the Listed Pioneer Pinotage Kenilworth Cup over 3200m and said, “Coltrane is very highly rated but I think 3200m would be at the end of his limit and he would probably prefer a touch shorter. Manx Missile will love the two miles and is consistent but he has had to run in races where he has been out at the weights so his merit rating has slid up and should be lower, so he might not be good enough.”

Ramsden concluded, “All of our horses are running to form and long may it continue.”

Pictures: Act Of War and Kingvoldt (Liesl King)

The top class Var colt broke the Kenilworth course record over 1200m last time and his previous two wins over 1200m and 1000m respectively were equally impressive.

The only question is whether he will stay the trip and Drier said, “He is spot on but this is his big test to see if he is a Guineas horse. If he gets the mile I think he is the horse to beat.”

Generalissimo jumps from pole position with stable jockey Sean Cormack up. It is a small seven horse field, but is full of quality and includes two of the best three-year-olds in the country, Act Of War and MLJet.

Drier runs the classy Jet Master mare Jet Aglow in the Gr 2 weight for age Lanzerac Le General Green Point Stakes over 1600m and said, “She might just need it, although she is doing very well. It’s not easy against the colts, but she won’t disgrace herself. Beach Beauty couldn’t win the Green Point, but then won the Paddock Stakes and Majorca, and Jet Aglow will be following that same route.”

Drier’s below par Cape form does have to be judged against his fantastic results of previous seasons. He said, “They are all over the hiccup they had when they first arrived in Cape Town, but a couple of them haven’t run up to scratch.”

Pictures: Generalissimo and Sean Cormack (Liesl King)