Majmu Misses Classic
PUBLISHED: March 20, 2015
Majmu was a surprise withdrawal from the R1-million Wilgerbosdrift SA Fillies Classic but all 17 horses stood their ground for the R2-million SA Classic over 1800m at Turffontein on Saturday 28 March.
Majmu is apparently not yet at her best and the decision has been taken by De Kock not to run her in the SA Fillies Classic. That opens the way for Sean Tarry’s charge, Siren’s Call, to stake her claim for the Wilgerbosdrift Triple Tiara and the R1-million bonus that goes with it.
Majmu (Liesl King)
Siren’s Call won the Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas and will prefer the extra 200m but she could face a tougher challenge from Same Jurisdiction. In the Fillies Guineas she had to overcome a wide draw and also suffered interference. This time Duncan Howells’ charge has a very decent No 2 draw and Anton Marcus in the irons.
De Kock saddles Estidraaj, who scored an impressive win last time out but takes a jump in class.
Harry’s Son, winner of the Betting World Gauteng Guineas, will take his place in the Classic despite his No 17 draw, and is the only runner who is capable of claiming the R2-million bonus for winning SA Triple Crown.
Piere Strydom has retained the ride but there are stamina doubts about the Paul Lafferty-trained Australian-bred runner. Even if he does win the SA Classic it is questionable whether the connections will be tempted to try him over 2450m in the SA Derby on Saturday 25 April.
Harry’s Son (Nkosi Hlophe)
Ertijaal, impressive winner of the Grade 1 Investec Cape Derby in January, will take his place in the final SA Classic field. He is another with a wide raw but over 1800m on the standside track jockey Gavin Lerena will have the opportunity to position his charge as they have around 400m of back straight before they hit the turn. In addition, based on the manner in which he won the Cape Derby, it would come as no surprise to see the Mike de Kock-trained runner go off to the front.
French Navy, a flying second in the Guineas, is well drawn at No 2 and will have many supporters over this extra 200m. Raymond Danielson retains the ride.
Only 16 runners can go to post for the race which means one runner has to be a reserve runner. Racegoers might find it strange that Unparalleled, the second highest rated runner in the race, has landed up in that position.
Unfortunately trainer Johan Janse van Vuuren did not declare his horse before the stipulated deadline. In terms of the rules his horse remains a declared runner but goes to the bottom of the pack. As more than 16 runners accepted, Unparalleled becomes the reserve and will only race if there is a withdrawal.
Final field for the R2-million SA Classic (Grade 1) over 1800m
1 – 17 HARRY’S SON (P V Lafferty) P Strydom 58.0 – 114
2 – 16 ERTIJAAL (M F De Kock) G Lerena 58.0 – 107
3 – 2 FRENCH NAVY (S G Tarry) R Danielson 58.0 – 105
4 – 1 MLJET (V H Marshall) M Byleveld 58.0 – 105
5 – 6 FOREST FOX (P A Peter) A Marcus 58.0 – 102
6 – 13 ILLUMINATI (W H Marwing) S Cormack 58.0 – 100
7 – 11 PRINCE OF ORANGE (R R Magner) G van Niekerk 58.0 – 99
8 – 10 MUTAMAKKIN (M F De Kock) A Delpech 58.0 – 97
9 – 3 ARNISTON (J A Soma) …………… 58.0 – 94
10 – 15 DEPUTY JUD (M G Azzie) B Fayd’Herbe 58.0 – 94
11 – 14 GREEK LEGEND (M G Azzie) J P v’d Merwe 58.0 – 94
12 – 9 AMSTERDAM (P A Peter) I Sturgeon 58.0 – 88
13 – 5 DIESEL JET (E Verdonese) M Yeni 58.0 – 88
14 – 8 MAC DE LAGO (W H Marwing) W Marwing 58.0 – 86
15 – 7 RAMPANT ICE (W H Marwing) M V’Rensburg 58.0 – 86
16 – 12 FINCHATTON (S G Tarry) S Khumalo 58.0 – 83
Reserve Runners
17 – 4 UNPARALLELED (J A Janse van Vuuren) Reserve 1 58.0 – 112
Same Trainer: (2,8) (3,16) (5,12) (6,14,15) (10,11)
Final field for the R1-million Wilgerbosdrift SA Fillies Classic (Grade 1) over 1800m
1 – 2 SAME JURISDICTION (D C Howells) A Marcus 58.0 – 110
2 – 7 SIREN’S CALL (S G Tarry) P Strydom 58.0 – 105
3 – 6 BANBURY (G H Van Zyl) B Fayd’Herbe 58.0 – 104
4 – 8 PINE PRINCESS (M F De Kock) G Lerena 58.0 – 103
5 – 3 TROPHY WIFE (S G Tarry) R Danielson 58.0 – 103
6 – 5 SMART CALL (A G Laird) W Marwing 58.0 – 101
7 – 4 SENSIBLE LOVER (W H Marwing) M V’Rensburg 58.0 – 99
8 – 9 TAMAANEE (S G Tarry) S Khumalo 58.0 – 99
9 – 1 ESTIDRAAJ (M F De Kock) A Delpech 58.0 – 93
10 – 10 ZRINSKI (R R Sage) G Wrogemann 58.0 – 84
Same Trainer: (2,5,8) (4,9)
- Phumelela Racing
Dubai World Cup night fields announced
PUBLISHED: March 19, 2015
The Dubai Racing Club have announced the official race fields and saddle cloth allocations for World Cup night, Saturday March 28.
African Story bids to make it two in a row in the Dubai World Cup, but will have his work cut out against eight classy rivals including Epiphaneia and American challenger, California Chrome.
There will be plenty for South African fans to cheer as Tony Millard saddles Super Jockey in the Golden Shaheen and Mike de Kock sends out a total of seven runners on the night, including Pylon in the Godolphin Mile; Al Moonqith, Star Empire and Mushreq in the Dubai Gold Cup; Mubtaahij (pictured) in the UAE Derby; Via Africa in the Al Quoz Sprint and Umgiyo in the Dubai Turf.
Runners and their trainers are listed below:-
$1,000,000 Gr2 Godolphin Mile – 1600m (dirt)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Graphic (Ireland) | William Haggas |
| 2. | Sloane Avenue (USA) | Jeremy Noseda |
| 3. | Bradester (USA) | Eddie Kenneally |
| 4. | Tamarkuz (USA) | Musabah Al Muhairi |
| 5. | Pylon (South Africa) | Mike de Kock |
| 6. | Surfer (USA) | Satish Seemar |
| 7. | Frankyfourfingers (France) | Salim bin Ghadayer |
| 8. | Dark Emerald (Ireland) | Brendan Powell |
| 9. | Gold City (Ireland) | Satish Seemar |
| 10. | Prayer For Relief (USA) | Dale Romans |
| 11. | Layl (USA) | Doug Watson |
| 12. | Forjatt (Ireland) | Dhruba Selvaratnam |
| 13. | Nolohay (Ireland) | Musabah Al Muhairi |
| 14. | Footbridge (USA) | Charlie Appleby |
| 15. | Free Wheeling (Australia) | Saeed bin Suroor |
$1,000,000 Gr2 Dubai Gold Cup – 3200m (turf)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Brown Panther (Great Britain) | Tom Dascombe |
| 2. | Bathyrhon (Germany) | Pia Brandt |
| 3. | Dubday (Great Britain) | Jassim Al Gazali |
| 4. | Ahzeemah (Ireland) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 5. | Meandre (France) | Doug Watson |
| 6. | Al Moonqith (USA) | Mike de Kock |
| 7. | Cooptado (Argentina) | Doug Watson |
| 8. | Rio Tigre (Ireland) | Salim bin Ghadayer |
| 9. | Star Empire (South Africa) | Mike de Kock |
| 10. | Brass Ring (Great Britain) | Ismail Mohammed |
| 11. | Havana Beat (Ireland) | Andrew Balding |
| 12. | Mushreq (Australia) | Mike de Kock |
| 13. | Marzocco (USA) | John Gosden |
| 14. | Al Saham (Great Britain) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 15. | Dormello (Ireland) | Dhruba Selvaratnam |
| 16. | Vaasa (Ireland) | Ahmad bin Harmash |
$2,000,000 Gr2 UAE Derby – 1900m (dirt)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Dear Domus (Japan) | Yutaka Takahasi |
| 2. | Tap That (Japan) | Yasutoshi Ikee |
| 3. | Golden Barows (USA) | Noriyuki Hori |
| 4. | Faithful Creek (Ireland) | Brian Meehan |
| 5. | My Johnny Be Good (USA) | Eoin Harty |
| 6. | Sir Fever (Uruguay) | Charlie Appleby |
| 7. | Mubtaahij (Ireland) | Mike de Kock |
| 8. | Maftool (USA) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 9. | Al Najem Al Faiz (Saudi Arabia) | Badr Reziac |
| 10. | Motaa (Saudi Arabia) | Badr Reziac |
$1,000,000 Gr1 Al Quoz Sprint – 1000m (turf)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Sole Power (Great Britain) | Edward Lynam |
| 2. | Amber Sky (Australia) | Ricky Yiu |
| 3. | Peniaphobia (Ireland) | Tony Cruz |
| 4. | Bundle Of Joy (Australia) | David Hall |
| 5. | Distinctiv Passion (USA) | Jeff Bonde |
| 6. | Stepper Point (Great Britain) | William Muir |
| 7. | Via Africa (South Africa) | Mike de Kock |
| 8. | Farmah (USA) | Francois Rohaut |
| 9. | Sir Maximilian (Ireland) | Ian Williams |
| 10. | Ahtoug (Great Britain) | Charlie Appleby |
| 11. | Caspar Netscher (Great Britain) | David Simcock |
| 12. | Caspian Prince (Ireland) | Tony Carrolll |
| 13. | Lancelot De Lac (Italy) | Dean Ivory |
| 14. | Hototo (Great Britain) | Fawzi Nass |
| 15. | Green Mask (USA) | Wesley Ward |
| 16. | Mirza (Great Britain) | Rae Guest |
$2,000,000 Gr1 Dubai Golden Shaheen – 1200m (dirt)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Lucky Nine (Ireland) | Caspar Fownes |
| 2. | Rich Tapestry (Ireland) | Michael Chang |
| 3. | Big Macher (USA) | Richard Baltas |
| 4. | Secret Circle (USA) | Bob Baffert |
| 5. | Salutos Amigos (USA) | David Jacobson |
| 6. | Muarrab (Great Britain) | Musabah Al Muhairi |
| 7. | Shaishee (USA) | Musabah Al Muhairi |
| 8. | Krypton Factor (Great Britain) | Fawzi Nass |
| 9. | Super Jockey (New Zealand) | Tony Millard |
| 10. | United Colour (USA) | Dhruba Selvaratnam |
| 11. | Speed Hawk (USA) | Robert Cowell |
| 12. | Cool Cowboy (USA) | Doug Watson |
| 13. | El Padrino (New Zealand) | Alwin Tan |
$6,000,000 Gr1 Dubai Turf – 1800m (turf)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Euro Charline (Great Britain) | Marco Botti |
| 2. | Mshawish (USA) | Todd Pletcher |
| 3. | Solow (Great Britain) | Freddy Head |
| 4. | Cladocera (Great Britain) | Alain de Royer Dupre |
| 5. | The Grey Gatsby (Ireland) | Kevin Ryan |
| 6. | Hunter’s Light (Ireland) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 7. | Trade Storm (Great Britain) | David Simcock |
| 8. | Farraaj (Ireland) | Dhruba Selvaratnam |
| 9. | Earnshaw (USA) | Salim bin Ghadayer |
| 10. | Umgiyo (Australia) | Mike de Kock |
| 11. | Limario (Great Britain) | Doug Watson |
$6,000,000 Gr1 Dubai Sheema Classic – 2410m (turf)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Main Sequence (USA) | Graham Motion |
| 2. | Designs On Rome (Ireland) | John Moore |
| 3. | Flintshire (Great Britain) | Andre Fabre |
| 4. | Harp Star (Japan) | Hiroyoshi Matsuda |
| 5. | Dolniya (France) | Alain de Royer Dupre |
| 6. | One And Only (Japan) | Kojiro Hashiguchi |
| 7. | Just The Judge (Ireland) | Charles Hills |
| 8. | Sky Hunter (Great Britain) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 9. | Sheikhzayedroad (Great Britain) | David Simcock |
| 10. | True Story (Great Britain) | Saeed bin Suroor |
$10,000,000 Gr1 Dubai World Cup – 2000m (dirt)
| No | Name | Trainer |
| 1. | Epiphaneia (Japan) | Katsuhiko Sumii |
| 2. | California Chrome (USA) | Art Sherman |
| 3. | Hokko Tarumae (Japan) | Katsuichi Nishiura |
| 4. | Ron The Greek (USA) | Nicholas Bachalard |
| 5. | Lea (USA) | William Mott |
| 6. | African Story (Great Britain) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 7. | Prince Bishop (Ireland) | Saeed bin Suroor |
| 8. | Side Glance (Great Britain) | Andrew Balding |
| 9. | Candy Boy (USA) | Doug Watson |
(Fields sourced from: Thenational.ae)
Picture: Mubtaahij (Dubai Racing Club)
– Sportingpost.co.za
Futura joins Legislate at Snaith Racing
PUBLISHED: March 18, 2015
Andrew Harrison
In something of a bizarre twist, J&B Met and L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate winner Futura has joined the stable of arch rival Legislate. The move follows the settlement of a dispute between the partners and Futura has been moved across the Phillipi sand from Brett Crawford to Justin Snaith.
None of the parties involved were forthcoming about the reasons for the split but a press statement released by Snaith Racing yesterday read, “The majority partners of Futura, Jack Mitchell and John Freeman, wish to record that they were presented with an ultimatum by their partner (Ian Longmore) that they either buy him out or sell to an overseas buyer, failing which he would force Futura to be sold by public auction within a matter of days.”
“His offer to sell has been accepted and the remaining partners felt it untenable to continue in a stable where their ex-partner has close ties. Therefore, Futura has been moved to Snaith Racing. The intention is to race the horse in Durban for the season and thereafter decide on his future.”
The statement continued, “Jack Mitchell and John Freeman wish to thank Brett Crawford for his magnificent handling of Futura and would like to record that the move in no way casts doubt on his ability as a racehorse trainer. They wish him every success in future.”
Futura (Liesl King)
In a sporting reply Crawford said, “I’m very upset to lose the horse but I wish him and his owners all the best in the future.”
When contacted, Freeman said he was not aware of the circumstances that led to the ultimatum and was not prepared to comment any further than what was in the press release. “We bought the horse to race, so that’s about it,” he added.
Longmore said it was a private matter and was not prepared to comment.
Legislate races in the colours of Drakenstein Stud but has Mitchell and Freeman as partners. The intention is for both colts to race in Champions Season so the winter programme for the two will be interesting.
New rating for Paterfamilias
PUBLISHED: March 18, 2015
Michael Clower
Paterfamilias has been raised 2kg to a new merit rating of 108 for his runaway win in last Saturday’s Johnny Joseph Conditions Plate at Turffontein but it now appears that Mike Bass’s President’s Champions Challenge contender may have been flattered by the eight length-plus winning margin.
Captain America, the 8-10 favourite who finished third, weakened badly in the final furlong after looking like a winner when he hit the front 400m out and the stipes reported that he was hanging.
Exelero, backed from 11-2 to 3-1 second favourite, was reported by his rider to have changed stride continually. The course vet said the horse was not striding out on his left fore and was making an abnormal respiratory noise. The latter complaint was also found to be affecting 5-1 third favourite Bezanova who finished fourth.
Captain America, though, is still on course for Saturday week’s HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes and Brett Crawford said yesterday: “That was a prep run. He pulled up fine, he is sound and on track.”
Picture: Paterfamilias (Liesl King)
King Of Pain committed
PUBLISHED: March 18, 2015
Cape trainer Joey Ramsden is fully intending to send Grade 1 Gold Challenge winner King Of Pain to the Highveld for next weekend’s R1-million HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes over 1600m.
He said: “Absolutely! He’ll be coming up for that race and then staying on with one of my assistants for the R2-million President’s Champions Challenge at the end of next month. We’re still finalising travel arrangements, but he’ll be there!”
King Of Pain beat some of the best “milers” in the land when landing a 40-1 win from a wide draw in last season’s 1600m Gold Challenge, his conquests including last year’s Horse Chestnut Stakes winner Yorker. He went on to run poorly in last year’s Vodacom Durban July before an excellent second to subsequent Queen’s Plate and J&B Met winner Futura in the Champions Cup at the end of last season. “That was a strong form line,” said Ramsden.
King Of Pain (Nkosi Hlophe)
A couple of months later there were worrying times for his connections when the good-looking Greys Inn gelding got colic and had to have an operation. According to Ramsden, he came through well and has “done alright”.
“He’s had one prep race and I was happy with the run,” said Ramsden. “He carried a massive weight, 62kg, and ran third behind Ze Kaiser and Power King in the Cape Mile at Kenilworth on 21 February. He put in a nice workout at Kenilworth last weekend and will have another grass gallop this weekend.”
King Of Pain, the joint-second top-rated runner on the list of entries behind Louis The King, is drawn at No 12 and that is not in his favour although he does run from the front which will limit the effect. And punters will ignore him at their peril because Ramsden has a good record on the occasions he has brought horses to the Highveld.
King Of Pain will be facing Futura again later in the season in Durban. Futura’s connections were considering sending him overseas but decided against it and trainer Brett Crawford told Gold Circle: “We are now getting him ready to go to Durban and his programme could possibly be the Independent On Saturday Drill Hall Stakes (2 May), the Rising Sun Gold Challenge (13 June) and the Vodacom Durban July (4 July).”
Equus Horse Of The Year Legislate is back in training, according to a Facebook post from Cape trainer Justin Snaith. Legislate was diagnosed with a severe lung infection after running last in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate in January and had to be scratched from the J&B Met. The Vodacom Durban July winner will be among the 20 horses Snaith takes to Durban for the Champions Season.
– Nicci Garner for TabNews
