Gauteng Guineas

It`s about time we hade a bit parity in the prizemoney imo,last 3 years at least the fillies race has been as good as or better than the colts race imo,i`m sure the fields are finalised today...




Race-7 R 500,000 1600m (Turf) 15:40 Ref-0
WILGERBOSDRIFT GAUTENG FILLIES GUINEAS (Grade 2)
For 3 year-old Fillies (1st Leg SA Triple Tiara)
1 8 CLOSE THE GAP 58.0 100 A W Marwing Ormond Ferrar
2 15 WINTER STAR 58.0 100 AT G Lerena Johan Janse v
3 4 ALONG CAME POLLY 58.0 97 A B Fayd'Herbe Gavin van Zyl
4 14 ATHINA 58.0 96 AT S Cormack Joe Soma
5 3 ADMIRAL'S EYE 58.0 94 BAT M Mienie Charles Laird
6 7 ARCETRI PINK (AUS) 58.0 94 AT R Fradd Geoff Woodruf
7 5 FOR THE LADS 58.0 94 AT P Strydom Sean Tarry
8 9 MOHAVE PRINCESS (A 58.0 93 A G Hatt Gavin van Zyl
9 2 SANTA CAROLINA 58.0 90 A A Delpech Mike de Kock
10 12 SARASOTA 58.0 90 A S Chambers Lucky Houdala
11 1 KINGS V 58.0 86 A *N Juglall Wallace Tolma
12 10 NOT SULKING 58.0 85 A A Marcus Geoff Woodruf
13 13 SAINT ANGELIQUE 58.0 82 A ............... Stanley Ferre
14 11 DASHING SCARLET 58.0 81 A K Shea Mike de Kock
15 6 NTOMBE (AUS) 58.0 79 A G Wrogemann Geoff Woodruf
(3, (6,12,15) (9,14)

Race-8 R 1,000,000 1600m (Turf) 16:20 Ref-0
BETTING WORLD GAUTENG GUINEAS (Grade 2)
For 3 year-olds (1st Leg of SASCOC Triple Crown)
1 2 FOREST INDIGO 58.0 104 A K Shea Alec Laird
2 10 BOUCLETTE TOP (ARG 58.0 97 A S Khumalo Alec Laird
3 8 MISTER CRICKET 58.0 97 A A Marcus Alec Laird
4 13 TAARISH (AUS) 58.0 97 A A Delpech Mike de Kock
5 9 AS YOU LIKE 58.0 96 A M Mienie Alec Laird
6 6 MR MULLINER 58.0 96 A *N Juglall Gary Alexande
7 11 LOUIS THE KING 58.0 94 A R Fradd Geoff Woodruf
8 7 LANCE 58.0 93 A P Strydom Sean Tarry
9 3 OLYMPIC OWEN 58.0 93 A S Chambers Corne Spies
10 4 SHADOW OFHIS SMILE 58.0 93 A B Fayd'Herbe Geoff Woodruf
11 14 MERCADO 58.0 85 BA R Danielson Sean Tarry
12 15 HILLBROW 58.0 84 A G Hatt Roy Magner
13 1 TEE JAY AR (AUS) 58.0 84 AT S Cormack Geoff Woodruf
14 16 FORT BELLINI 58.0 82 A G Lerena Sean Tarry
15 12 PLATINUM JET 58.0 82 A W Marwing Weiho Marwing
16 5 AMBER SAIL 58.0 58 AT C Little Heather E Ada
(1,2,3,5) (7,10,13) (8,11,14)

No Willow Magic, it looks like an Alec Laird horse will win but which one. :S

I hope that is Weichong and not Wesley riding Close The Gap. Santa Carolina if still not inexperienced could give Close The Gap a run for her money but I will be siding with experience.

shrek Wrote:

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> No Willow Magic, it looks like an Alec Laird horse
> will win but which one. :S
>
> I hope that is Weichong and not Wesley riding
> Close The Gap. Santa Carolina if still not
> inexperienced could give Close The Gap a run for
> her money but I will be siding with experience.


I agree on Close the Gap - proven form in features - very good comeback run when drawn badly and giving weight - I think will prove hard to beat - Santa Carolina yet to prove she is in the same league - but she may well be and if so, she may give Close the Gap something to think about - on exposed form however one has to be with CtG

I make the colts quite tricky - yes the Laird runners could dominate, but there are a few lurkers around (Louis the King, Fort Bellini, Platinum Jet) who may prove better than rated - and I would not discount Lance either

shrek Wrote:

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> No Willow Magic

Sad smiley

Heart of a Lion is unfortunately not 100% yet. Therefore we had to scratch him. Fingers crossed for the Classic and Derby.

Nickname Wrote:

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> Heart of a Lion is unfortunately not 100% yet.
> Therefore we had to scratch him. Fingers crossed
> for the Classic and Derby.


Nick, must be a massive runner in the Derby. Holding thumbs for you. (tu)

shrek Wrote:

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> Nickname Wrote:
>

---

>

---

> > Heart of a Lion is unfortunately not 100% yet.
> > Therefore we had to scratch him. Fingers
> crossed
> > for the Classic and Derby.
>
>
> Nick, must be a massive runner in the Derby.
> Holding thumbs for you. (tu)


That is his aim for the past 12 months, so if he runs that day, include him in all your bets that day.... Don't tell me afterwards I did not tell you guys and girls -D

shrek Wrote:

---

> No Willow Magic, it looks like an Alec Laird horse
> will win but which one. :S
>
> I hope that is Weichong and not Wesley riding
> Close The Gap. Santa Carolina if still not
> inexperienced could give Close The Gap a run for
> her money but I will be siding with experience.

Jockey Weichong Marwing, who is currently based in Hong Kong, will be jetting back home for Guineas Day.

Marwing, who is currently 14th on the Hong Kong jockeys’ log having finished seventh last season, will be riding Close The Gap for trainer Ormond Ferraris in the R500,000 Wilgerbosdrift Stud Gauteng Fillies Guineas and Platinum Jet for his brother Weiho in the R1,000,000 Betting World Gauteng Guineas.

Ferraris believes that Marwing will be returning to South Africa for good after nine full seasons in Hong Kong. “He’ll be riding for me but I only have a small string,” said the veteran trainer, who played a key role in Marwing becoming one of the best jockeys in the world.

Close The Gap heads the ratings with Winter Star in the Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas (Grade 2) over 1600m but is probably a bit better than her rating suggests. She has won three of her five career starts and finished second in the other two. She got too far back from a wide draw in the Three Troikas Stakes over 1450m on the inside track last time out but still made up nearly nine lengths in the final 400m to finish second to Athina. She meets Athina on 3kg better terms and, providing she does not go flat in her second run after a layoff, she should reverse that form. That was a brave effort and Close The Gap rates the one to beat.

Ferraris, who won this race with Cherry On The Top last year, disagrees that she is the one to beat, saying: “She’s no Cherry On The Top.”

He pointed out that Athina won that race well and that the current ratings may be flawed.

“I’m never confident,” he said. “I’ve been in this game too long – there are too many downs and not too many ups.”

Winter Star finished 0.50 lengths behind Close The Gap in third place that day and was handed a 1kg penalty, although this is a stakes race so all the runners carry 58kg and Winter Star meets Ferraris’ runner on 1kg better terms. She, too, came from far back in the Three Troikas Stakes but the same tactics might have to be used again this time because she is drawn widest of all.

Platinum Jet takes a steep rise in class in the Gauteng Guineas in his first run out of the maiden ranks. He beat Excalivar by 3.75 lengths over 1200m at the Vaal recently, running on strongly after losing ground at the start. He is an interesting contender because he finished a 2.25-length third behind Mister Cricket over 1160m in his debut and is entitled to have improved enormously since then.

Marwing will have to be at his shrewdest from a wide draw, but the 43-year-old jockey is a master at finding a box seat for his mounts no matter where they are drawn. This will be Platinum Jet’s first run round a turn.

As far as the ratings are concerned they’re all racing for second against Forest Indigo, who the handicappers believe should win the Gauteng Guineas by about 3.50 lengths. There are doubts about Forest Indigo’s stamina, though, because his wins have been recorded up to 1400m and he has failed to score in both his races over 1600m. He did get quite far back in the Cape Guineas, when a fast-finishing fourth behind Elusive Gold, and made up more than seven lengths in the final 400m of the Premier’s Champion Stakes, when second to Kochka.

Mister Cricket to knock them out the park

Close the Gap and Mr Cricket should doddle this...

I wonder where Diamond King is. He would have been in with a huge shout.

No betting yet?