Gr3 Acacia Handicap - game win for Dancewiththedevil
ENTER THE DEVIL
Dancewiththedevil looks to be a filly with a future and she made her first venture into Stakes company a successful one when she won the Acacia Handicap over 1600m on the Turffontein standside course on Saturday. The four-year-old had run out the highly impressive winner of a graduation plate over the same course-and-distance earlier in February and went off as the 15/10 favourite against fourteen other fillies and mares here. Fisani was well supported from an ante-post call of 16/1 to start as the 7/1 second favourite, while Dancewiththedevil’s stable companion Engagement was the 15/2 third choice of punters, writes Matthew Lips.
There was no shortage of early speed as Carey’s Qui took off at a gallop she could never have maintained and opened up a lead of some five or six lengths from Give Me Five and All Afire, with Headstrong also prominent. Dancewiththedevil was content to bide her time a long way back in a strung out field, while Fisani was also given a patient ride. Carey’s Qui was still well ahead turning for home, but it wasn’t long before she started to feel the pinch. Give Me Five was nearest as the pacemaker weakened, with Goat making good progress to work her way into contention as Fisani started to stay on from well back. Goat looked the possible winner coming to the last 200m, but Dancewiththedevil was now arriving on the scene in no uncertain fashion. Brought wider out by Felix Coetzee to ensure she had no traffic problems, the favourite stormed past Goat well inside the last 100m and went on to beat the top weight by a widening 1.25 lengths.
Fisani stayed on well and finished 1.25 lengths further away in third, half-a-length in front of Give Me Five, but Engagement was never seen with a chance and was beaten more than a dozen lengths into seventh place. Goat ran a storming race considering she gave the winner 5.5 kgs and Paul Lafferty’s KZN raider will remain in Gauteng for the other big fillies’ and mares’ races ahead, but it was hard not to be taken with the way Dancewiththedevil quickened to win. The fact that the pacesetter went too fast and blew up after stringing the field out exaggerates the amount of ground which the winner made up, but it was an eye-catching performance for a horse stepping out of graduation class and there could be even bigger races than this Gr 3 to be won with the St John Gray-owned, trained, and bred four-year-old.
Dancewiththedevil is the first Graded Stakes winner sired by the undistinguished Zafonic stallion Modus Vivendi and is out of the Caesour mare Emperor’s Dance, who won three races over 1000m from only eight appearances. Dancewiththedevil has now won four times from eight starts and earned R307 925.
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Acacia Hcp (SAf-G3) (2/26)
Turffontein, South Africa, February 26, R165.000, 1600m, turf, good, 1.37.64 (CR 1.35.44).
DANCEWITHTHEDEVIL (SAF), 54.5, b f 4, Modus Vivendi (GB) – Emperor’s Dance (SAF) by Caesour. Owner St John D Gray; breeder Graystone Stud (SAF); trainer StJohn D Gray; jockey F Coetzee (103.125)
Goat (SAF), 60.0, b m 5, Labeeb (GB) – Hello Dolly (SAF) by Caesour
Fisani (SAF), 58.0, b f 4, Kahal (GB) – Gypsey Spirit (SAF) by Coastal
Margins: 1¼, 1¼, ½
Also ran: Give Me Five (SAF) 54.0, Headstrong (IRE) 57.5, Generous Anna (AUS) 55.0, Stella Mia (SAF) 54.0, Tree Of Perfection (SAF) 58.5, Queen Mira (AUS) 56.0, Lisa Anne (SAF) 55.5, All Afire (SAF) 56.0, Engagement (SAF) 54.5, Carey’s Qui (SAF) 54.0, Bella Jet (SAF) 55.0, Filly Bushwacker (SAF) 57.5
