The stars responded positively for trainer Coenie de Beer at Scottsville Racecourse on Saturday when his Overlord gelding Talktothestars moved smoothly through under Piere Strydom to win the R1-million, Grade 1 Tsogo Sun Sprint over 1 200m.
Bred at the Scott Bros Highdown Stud at Nottingham Road in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands and out of the Spaceship mare Tellittothestars, the four-year-old owned by De Beer had given notice in the Grade 1 Computaform Sprint at Turffontein that he possessed the ability to produce a rocketing finish when he covered the final 400m from the back of the field to second behind Carry On Alice in 22.1 secs.
On Saturday the boosters were never necessary and he came home without being challenged to win by 2.25 lengths from outsider African Ruler, Exelero and Red Ray. However, the gelding appeared less than friendly to Strydom before the race trying to buck him off but once in the stalls he settled quietly and when the pens opened set about his work with enthusiasm and diligence to win comfortably.
The odds-on favourite to win the Grade 1 City Of Pietermaritzburg Fillies Sprint, Carry On Alice from the Sean Tarry stable, was seen as the banker of the day under the weight-for-age conditions of the race as she made her bid to complete the race double having won it last year. Jockey S’manga Khumalo settled her in behind the line of early pacemakers as they covered the first few 100m of the race but when he decided to slip the filly up a gear he found the wall of horses ahead of him a problem.
He searched for a gap without success and had to watch the flying heels of Real Princess from the Dean Kannemeyer stable carry Anthony Delpech to a 1.25 lengths victory over Fly By Night that ran a much improved race with outsider Joan Ranger running a top race in third. The Captain Al filly had to settle for fifth place behind Lanner Falcon.
This race gave Kannemeyer and Delpech, who have become a formidable team, yet another feature win of the season and the filly’s fifth win from seven starts at Scottsville.
Cape trainer Vaughan Marshall completed the Grade 1 juvenile double when his runners won both the Allan Robertson Championship and the Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion with the two progeny of top sprinting sire Captain Al sporting considerable reputations prior to the meeting.
Marshall, who had trained the sire and the filly All Is Secret that had won the Allan Robertson Championship four years ago, won the race on Saturday with the full sister The Secret Is Out that had already won both her starts comfortably. Under regular pilot MJ Byleveld she held off the Mike de Kock-trained SA Fillies Nursery winner Fursa with the Tarry duo of Visuality and Myfunnyvalentine, the latter having finished second to Fursa at Turffontein, filling the minor placings.
The former Port Elizabeth-based Tiger Ridge colt Oomph, recently having joined the Mike Azzie stable, was favourite to win the Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion but Marshall had sounded the alarm in a pre-race interview that Always In Charge would make them all run. And that he certainly did. Anton Marcus, official rider for the Ingrid and Markus Jooste horses, replaced Byleveld in the saddle for this event and with hardly raising a sweat steered the colt to a three lengths victory over Seattle Singer with Rivarine and Red Rock following them to the line.
With the exception of Carry On Alice, fancied runners performed well in most races and there were 75.96 winning tickets of the R3 316 587 Pick 6 Pool producing a dividend of R43 663.
www.goldcircle.co.za
Topic Author
