The brilliant five-year-old Western Winter entire will be attempting to defend his L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate crown next January.

Capetown Noir was scratched from the Gr 1 Champions Cup at Greyville on the last weekend of last season after a minor hiccup. However, three months later he is “flying” at home at Milnerton. He loves the Kenilworth 1600m and his brilliant win in the Queen’s Plate last season earned him the Equus Champion Miler award.

Kannemeyer’s other Equus Award winner, the Champion Stayer Hot Ticket, was found to have an infected larynx after returning from Durban. However, he is now recovering well. He will likely start off in a shorter race in order to help him “blow clean”, before being aimed at the J&B Jet Stayers on J&B Met day.

Kannemeyer’s promising four-year-old Dynasty gelding Speed Rocket will be coming out in November, while his useful four-year-old Silvano colt Power King made a good reappearance recently when giving 1,5kg to Heldeberg Blue in a Pinnacle Stakes event over 1800m and only losing by 0,75 lengths.

The yard have a chance of adding to their excellent record in the Selangor Cup and Grand Parade Cape Guineas with the Trippi colt Afrikaburn, who won a Gr 1 in KZN last season.

The other promising three-year-olds Kannemeyer mentioned were Balance Sheet, Dynastic, Tripandie and Captain Alfredo.

He said that Balance Sheet, who is by Silvano, would be unlikely to take part in the Gr 3 Cape Classic over 1400m on October 25 as it would be too sharp for him.

In fact he said he would not be showing his three-year-old hand early this season as he believed a few of them would be at their best during the Champions Season in KZN next year.

Picture: Capetown Noir by Liesl King

NHA Racing Control Executive David McGillivray said: “The suspension will not apply until the High Court has made its decision and only then will it be either waived or effected, but when it will actually get a mention I don’t know.”

The ban, imposed for Khumalo’s handling of the Sean Tarry-trained newcomer Supertube at the Vaal over 11 months ago, was put on hold when his lawyers applied to the High Court for a review after the sentence was confirmed by the Appeal Board.

Should the champion decide to drop the case he would have to serve the ban but McGillivray said: “I am sure it is going to proceed but I don’t know how long it will be before it actually gets into court.”

Picture: Nkosi Hlophe

The Dean Kannemeyer-trained Afrikaburn became the first colt of Trippi’s South African-bred progeny to win a Gr 1 when winning the Durban Golden Horseshoe over 1 400m last season and joining him as contemporary three-year-olds with exciting potential this season are two Sean Tarry-trained colts, Zambezi River and Trip To Heaven.

Afrikaburn has a tremendous turn of foot. In his recent reappearance in the Gr 3 Kuda Matchem Stakes over 1 400m against older horses, he took a while to get going in the straight but then took off late and this has prompted Kannemeyer to consider fitting quarter cup blinkers next time out.

Afrikaburn will avoid the Gr 3 Cape Classic on October 25, so his next big race target is likely to be the Gr 2 Selangor Cup over 1600m.

Zambezi River was slow away on his debut over 1000m at the Vaal last week, but cut through the field like a hot knife through butter late in the race and appeared to do it effortlessly.  He won easing up by 1,5 lengths, despite having drifted from 3/1 to 5/1 in the betting. Both Afrikaburn and Zambezi River were bred by Drakenstein Stud.

On Saturday the Highlands Farm Stud-bred Trip To Heaven, returning from a 125 day layoff, was very impressive when stretching further and further clear under a hands and heels ride to win a Maiden over 1 200m on the Turffontein Inside track by 7,75 lengths.

Tarry provided Trippi with his first ever South African-bred Gr 1 winner, the filly For The Lads, who won the Golden Slipper over 1 400m at Greyville but she unfortunately lost her way as a three-year-old last season.

Another promising colt from Trippi’s current three-year-old crop is Punk Rocker who won the Gr 3 Godolphin Barb Stakes over 1100m at Clairwood last season. However, he is still being rested at present.

The Kannemeyer-trained colt Tripandie also looked promising when winning from a tough draw over 1 200m at Clairwood last season. Kanemeyer said he would take a “soft route’’ with him and he will have to win another race before he thinks about running him in three-year-old features. There are also some promising fillies among the three-year-old Trippi crop.

The Mike de Kock-trained One Fine Day finished an excellent second against the boys in the Golden Horseshoe last season to give Trippi and Drakenstein a Gr 1 one-two. She is entered in a Novice Plate over 1 000m at Turffontein this Saturday.

The Charles Laird-trained Klawervlei Stud-bred Beloved Country has won three out of five starts, including a Listed and a Non-Black Type event, and is being aimed at the R1 million Cape Yearling Sales Graduates race over 1200m next January at Kenilworth.

The speedy Justin Snaith-trained Arria is a Listed winner and she will be making her reappearance on October 26 at Fairview in a Graduation Plate.

The Snaith-trained Cotton Candy, who won two out of seven starts last season and was stakes placed, has had a successful operation to remove a fetlock chip and has been doing very well in training. Of the older Trippis, the Mike Bass-trained five-year-old mare Hammie’s Hooker should have a halcyon season now that her nemesis Beach Beauty has been retired. Bass also trains the Gr 1-placed four-year-old Trippi filly Lanner Falcon, who finished second in the Gr 3 Diana Stakes in her reappearance. She will be kept to trips from 1 200-1 600m this season. Shingwedzi is another Bass-trained four-year-old filly that should make an impact.

Geoff Woodruff has the Gr 1-placed Not Sulking, who is recovering from injury, but should be back racing in about February next year.

Bass’ useful Trippi gelding Paterfamilias is back in work after injury, but his Trippi stable companion Abercrombie is still being rested.

The lightning fast Louis Goosen-trained gelding Trip Tease has won seven out of eleven, including a Gr 3 on turf and a Listed on the sand, so he could make an impact in the big Highveld sprint races.

Of the two-year-olds the Snaiths have a colt out of the Gr 1 winner Sparkling Gem that they have high hopes for. He should be watched out for as he is likely to be racing soon and should win first time out. Justin also spoke highly of another young two-year-old Trippi colt that has just arrived. It is tough for any sire to make it as buyers are notoriously fickle and a stallion can go out of fashion virtually as quickly as it takes their progeny to complete a race.

There have been one or two detractors as it took a while for a Trippi to win a Gr 1 and most of the good ones appeared to be fillies. However, that all looks likely to change this season.

Picture: Drakenstein Stud

Regardstobroadway, a three-year-old filly by Var, won on debut with Anton Marcus up over 1000m on the Greyville polytrack on Sunday and broke the class record in the process. This powerfully built bay is not happy around the starting stalls, but “horse whisperer” Glyn Redgrave has been working with her on that issue. She looks like a real racehorse. She led from start to finish on Sunday and still appeared to have plenty in the tank at the line. Furthermore, the filly she beat by a length, the Paul Gadsby-trained Miss Varlicious, who is also by Var, is held in good regard.

African Dream is a four-year-old filly by Mogok who has won four out of eight starts. All of her wins have been over 1200m. However, in her last start towards the end of last season at Clairwood, a horse next to her played up in the pens and as a result African Dream rushed forward and cut parts of her mouth on the front of the pens. She was downgraded by the starter as a result, so will likely be loaded late next time out. She has been put through plenty of schooling at the pens in the last few weeks. African Dream is entered in a Conditions Plate over 1200m on the polytrack at Greyville this Sunday. Her immediate big race target is the Gr 3 Magnolia Handicap over 1160m at Turffontein on Sansui Summer Cup day, November 29.

Riff Raf is a big three-year-old colt by Royal Air Force and stands over a lot of ground. He won his second start over 1400m on the polytrack with consummate ease after going close on debut  over 1400m at Scottsville. Riff Raf has an excellent attitude and showed that he was thoroughly enjoying himself in a canter on the bottom sand at Summerveld yesterday. He was striding out well with his head in his chest under Anton Marcus. Freedman said that Riff Raf was still just a “big baby”, so there would be no rush with him. However, the Listed KZN Guineas Trial over 1600m at Greyville on November 9 is a possibility.

All three of these horses look to be full of ability and can be followed.

Picture: Nkosi Hlophe

This might have scuppered the plans of last season’s Equus Champion two-year-old Harry’s Son, who was among a 15-strong Paul Lafferty-trained string that was due to campaign in the Cape Summer Of Champions Season. Lafferty said the 40 day delay would have a snowballing effect as it would mean the horses would have less time to recover from their arduous journey down to Cape Town before some of their chief targets.

If travel is not possible before the 40 day period is over, a flight down to Cape Town close to the date of the Gr 1 Grand Parade Cape Guineas on December 20, which is Harry’s Son’s chief target, could be an option. Another option is that he could be re-routed towards a Johannesburg campaign instead. However, it is early days in the problem that faces Lafferty and not only is he awaiting the decision of the veterinary authorities, but any proposals made will still have to be discussed with connections.

Among other good horses in Lafferty’s intended Cape Town string were Garibondy, Flying Loot, Goldie Coast and some promising two-year-olds. Meanwhile, Dennis Drier’s entire Cape Town string had fortunately already arrived in Cape Town before the horse tested AHS positive at Summerveld.

Picture: Trainer Paul Lafferty and Harry’s Son (David Thiselton)