Daily News 2000/Woolavington 2000

Crack colt Big City Life heads up a high class field for the R1 million Daily News 2000 to be run at Greyville Racecourse on Saturday, June 6. The Glen Kotzen-trained runner heads up a field of 14 for one of the most important classic races of the national horse racing season.



The Daily News 2000 has in the recent years proved to be an important stepping stone for three-year-old colts into the Vodacom Durban July with recent July winners Eyeofthetiger, Greys Inn and Dynasty, all faring well in the race.



Further, victory in the Daily News 2000 for the KRA Guineas (Gr 2) and Investec Cape Derby (Gr 1) winner will almost ensure Big City Life of top honours at the end of season Equus Awards. The colt will again be ridden by Bernard Fayd’Herbe, a grandson of one of this country’s greatest jockeys, Harold “Tiger” Wright.



Among the opposition in the Daily News will be the Mike de Kock-trained trio of Bouquet-Garni, recent winner of the South African Derby (Gr 1) at Turffontein and stable companions Forest Path, winner of the Golden Horseshoe (Gr 1) on Vodacom Durban July day last year and recent KRA Guineas (Gr 2) runner-up to Big City Life, Port Of Dubai.



The imported colt Dan De Lago, a recent impressive winner at Clairwood, will represent the powerful Charles Laird yard while the Turkish-owned, Fenerbahce, renamed by his owners after the leading Turkish football club, will be ridden by top jockey Piere Strydom for trainer Gary Alexander.









The R500 000 Woolavington 2000 (Gr 1), to be run on the same afternoon as the R1 million Daily News 2000 (Gr 1) on Saturday June 6, at Greyville Racecourse, has attracted a high class field headed by the Ormond Ferraris-trained Gypsy’s Warning who is the highest rated filly in the line-up.



However, other acceptances include Mother Russia, Zirconium and last season’s champion juvenile filly Consensual, among a host of other talent and the race could shape up into the decider as to which is the country’s champion sophomore middle distance filly.



Gypsy’s Warning showed in her last win in the SA Fillies Classic (Gr 1) that she was on top of the pile as far as the Gauteng contingent was concerned and she returns to KwaZulu-Natal where she started her career under the guidance of Duncan Howells.



The Joe Ramsden-trained Mother Russia was a tad disappointing when finishing down the field in the recent KRA Fillies Guineas but is lengths better than that showing as her victories in the Odessa Stud Fillies Classic (Gr 2) and the Riverworld Stud Prix Du Cap (Gr 3) showed. She also finished third behind Gypsy’s Warning and Zirconium in last season’s Thekwini Fillies Stakes (Gr 1).



Zirconium, who races in the famous Oppenheimer silks for trainer Mike de Kock has finished second on two occasions behind Gypsy’s Warning so is right up there with the best of them.



Last season’s champion juvenile filly, Consensual, has not found that form this term but did show encouraging signs of finding her feet again when running on late in the KRA Fillies Guineas.



SA Oaks winner Bedloe’s Island is also in the line-up which has attracted a maximum field of 16 and the Woolavington 2000 should be one of the highlights of Champions Season.

I dont CC nomination

The Daily News, the weakest field I've seen in many a years

Don't be like that Shikar3.

Big City Life hard to beat. Gypsy's Warning has a kak draw and Zirconeum can make a bigger race of it than when they last met at Turffies.

Do you think Zirconeum will be effective over the distance ?? I think she gonna be a super 4 yr old .... just not sure she is effective past 1600m at this stage of her career... just my opinion.

consensual coming to hand, should be a huge runner , draw as well to overcome

There is a bit of a stamina doubt with Zirconeum but I think she will cope on a course like Greyville.

Gypsy`s warning and Big city life for the double

Hmmmm Hibs.... that seems too obvious .

Gypsy's Warning didn't get a great draw - will make it hard for her

Zirconeum with Dan De Lago