Our much maligned handicappers may have taken a quiet bow on Saturday after they proved pretty much on the mark with the early 3yo ratings following the running of the Kenilworth Saturday features.
Joining in the celebrations were the ‘Missisippi Burning’ team of trainer Adam Marcus, owner Mario Ferreira and jockey Craig Zackey, who must fancy their chances of launching a bold double bid on the Cape Fillies Guineas silverware after Princess Calla made short work of the opposition to win the Gr2 Western Cape Fillies Championship.
Princess Calla storms home under Craig Zackey (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
While there is plenty of water to flow under the bridge between now and the classic in December, the reality that there are unlikely to be a host of up-country raiders down for the Cape summer in view of the parlous and uncertain stakes environment.
That must make the Cape Fillies Guineas double an extremely attainable goal for the team that struck last year with Missisippi Burning.
After tracking the free-striding favourite Trickster (7-2) all the way, Princess Calla (4-1) put the race to bed in a matter of strides under Craig Zackey as she drew clear for a facile victory in a time of 87,37 secs.
Trickster showed plenty of resolve to stay on for a 2,75 length second with the Bass-Robinson pair of Zarina (13-2) and Lemon Delight (17-2) staying on for third and fourth.
The official ratings worked out well, with top-rated Princess Calla (105) beating the 104 rated Trickster. Third-placed Zarina ran off a 92, but was restricted to a max increase last time and actually achieved a 101 when beating Capitana by 0,75 lengths.
Formerly trained by Dennis Bosch, Princess Calla, a R600 000 Cape Premier Yearling Sale graduate, took her stakes tally to R153 750 with her second victory from three starts.
She was placed in the Gr1 Thekweni Stakes behind the sensational undefeated champion, Anything Goes, at her last start.
Team Marcus celebrate a smart victory (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Bred by Maine Chance Farms, Princess Calla was Flower Alley’s eighth South African two-year-old winner on debut in KZN last term, alongside Saturday’s fourth-placed and previously stakes performed, Lemon Delight. She is her sire’s 25th stakes winner.
Flower Alley is the sire of 47 black type horses, including Kentucky Derby winning champion I’ll Have Another, and is broodmare sire of multiple G1 winner Lucky Lilac.
His other smart daughters include Gr1 Ashland Stakes winner Lilacs And Lace, champion My Wandy’s Girl, Gr3 Delta Princess Stakes heroine Bouquet Booth, and Oaks Trial winner, Fayrooz.
Princess Calla is out of the four-time winning Captain Al mare Princess Royal.
A son of Distorted Humor, Flower Alley has 13 lots on offer at the 2020 Emperors Palace National 2yo Sale and a single lot on the CTS Ready To Run, Unbroken 2yo & Mixed Sale.
