wrap by Gold Circle
Champions Season 2015 closed in fantastic fashion at Greyville in Durban on Saturday with the fancied runners generally coming to the party giving punters one of the most successful meetings of the three-month festival of racing.
The favourites won in many of the 12 races including the two top Grade 1 events, the R1.25-million eLan Property Group Gold Cup won by Wild One and the R1-million Champions Cup taken by Futura that both produced exciting finishes that thrilled the crowd.
While the meeting was the close of Champions Season, because of the one-week postponement of the meeting to August 1, it also heralded the start of the country’s 2015-2016 racing season giving winning connections a double bonus kicking off the new season on a winning note.
The country’s premier race for stayers lived up to its claimed status and in victory for trainer Mike de Kock it was a welcome result after a rather “quiet” season where the Mogok gelding, bred by the Scott Bros Stud from the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, gave him only his second Grade 1 race of the season – a far cry from some previous seasons when his powerful stable had virtually dominated racing in the country.
The 3 200m marathon event had been planned for a year by De Kock who put Wild One away for almost a year after he had run second in the race last year. He then brought him back to run second in two feature events as his preparation for Saturday’s event and the rest certainly worked wonders for the gelding that had been put up for auction by owner Sean Phillips then bought back at the beginning of the year for R200 000. After Saturday’s race Phillips will no doubt consider it one of his best business decisions with Wild One earning a healthy R781 250 in prize money.
Stable companion Kingston Mines, that had won two races earlier in the season over 2 800m, was sent to the front after the early scramble for position and set a reasonable pace before being headed by the Joe Soma-trained Savage Wind in which Phillips also owned a share. J’s Outsider, that had sprinted across from his outside draw to be the early leader going into the first turn, settled back in third place with Ash Cloud and Solid Speed handy.
Savage Wind had taken up the pacemaker role halfway through the race and at the top of the home straight, under Callan Murray, he still had the lead and was still running strongly. But for Kingston Mines, the race was over and he fell back as most of the field surged past him.
Anthony Delpech brought Wild One through with a sustained finishing run to overhaul Savage Wind as outsider Balance Sheet from the Dean Kannemeyer yard stormed down the outside under Kegan de Melo with a threatening run. But Wild One had done enough and stayed on strongly to win by nearly a length with Balance Sheet just shading Savage Wind for second and Storm Warning staying on for the fourth cheque.
The Champions Cup was seen by everyone as a match race between Justin Snaith’s stable companions, Futura and Legislate, and when the field entered the top of the straight it looked like it would play out that way. Futura had been a little slow out of the gates and jockey Bernard Fayd’Herbe had to use him a bit in the early stages to get into a good position.
Legislate had raced round the field to be up with the lead turning for home and when the Dynasty colt was given his head it appeared that he could go on to win. But Anton Marcus on Ice Machine for Charles Laird had tracked Legislate into the straight and when the Silvano gelding shifted into top gear it was quickly seen that he had the measure of Legislate.
In the meantime Fayd’Herbe had stepped Futura up into overdrive and as he rocketed down the inside of the track he came under pressure from Ice Machine that appeared to head him before he produced the extra of a fighting champion to snatch the victory.
The feature programme started with the Grade 1 Thekwini Stakes for juveniles over 1 600m where Chestnuts N Pearls from the Dennis Drier stable was the strong favourite, but when it came to crunch time the Horse Chestnut filly had nothing extra to offer when the Duncan Howells-trained Elusive Fort filly Lauderdale burst away to win easily from Melliflora and Persian Rug. Chestnuts N Pearls dead-heated with Flying Ice for fourth place.
The unlucky horse in the race, however, was Persian Rug from the De Kock stable that had taken command at the top of the straight. However, as she saw the shadow from the grandstand she dug in her heels allowing other horses to pass her before fighting back with a strong finish to gain the third place.
The Brave Tin Solidier colt Rabada from the Mike Azzie stable was the 9-10 favourite to win the R600 000, Grade 1 Premiers Champion Stakes and he duly obliged to maintain his unbeaten record. He did come under pressure from Prospect Strike and his stable companion Abashiri, but in the end he had their measure and won by nearly a length with Mogok Master filling the fourth place.
The Grade 1 Gold Bracelet closed of the Pick 6 for the meeting and the Glen Kotzen-trained Jet Master mare Jet Belle was strongly fancied to win the 2 000m event. But she failed to fire on the day and it was the Joey Ramsden-trained Silvano filly Gallica Rose that powered to the line holding off a challenge from the De Kock-trained Hard Spun filly Estidraaj with Acrostar and Counting Angels filling the minor placings.
Night Trip from the Mike Bass stable was a comfortable winner of the Listed Darley Arabian over 1 600m. The Trippi gelding had won this race last year and stormed home unchallenged from Uncle Tommy, Big Cat and stable companion Mountain Master.
The meeting closed with the Listed Umngeni Handicap over 1 000m where it was “race over” some way out when Sean Cormack on the Dennis Drier-trained Captain Al gelding Barbosa deployed the retro rockets and he flashed home to win from Viva La Var, Brutal Force and Al Ciberano.
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