What A Boykie! MJ Byleveld catches his colleagues napping as A Boy Named Sue keeps going
A particularly enterprising ride by Avontuur sponsored jockey MJ Byleveld secured an unlikely win for A Boy Named Sue in Saturday’s R200 000 Gr3 Lektron Chairman’s Cup run over 3200m at Kenilworth.
Joey Ramsden’s horses are supremely fit and Byleveld, no doubt riding a psychological winning crest of the wave after the Bulls’ win over the Stormers the previous evening, shrewdly took full advantage of his colleagues’ lackadaisical attitude in his slipstream.
A Boy Named Sue is no shining star, and the only chance he had of realistically winning this race was to take the fight to the opposition and make them carry their loads.
It was thus hardly rocket science or the hatching of some tactical strategic plan when we saw the Caesour gelding leading as they passed the winning post for the first time. He was not headed thereafter.
An uneventful race saw the ill fated Grey Cossack following at varying distances just ahead of Jeppe’s Reef, with Crown Of Gold, League Of Honour, Blake, Paddy O’Reilly and River Crossing following the leader. Some twenty five lengths covered first to last down the back stretch.
Into the home run A Boy Named Sue led by a mile as Jeppe’s Reef started tightening up with Crown Of Gold and Blake also commencing their efforts.
Winners! A Boy Named Sue is led in by the winning team
At the 300m marker it looked like A Boy Named Sue had done his thing, as River Crossing and Blake came home strongly. But despite drifting outwards, Byleveld kept plugging away and A Boy Named Sue caught a second wind.
He stayed on to beat a fast finishing River Crossing by a length and a half in a time of 208,28 secs.
Topweight Blake plodded on steadily for third, while Crown Of Gold ran fourth.
Sadly the Carl Burger trained Grey Cossack broke down in running.
In a memorable day for owner bred horses after Gavin Walker’s Halfway To Heaven had won the Prix Du Cap, A Boy Named Sue won in the interests of Nice based Dave and Sue Hudson, who also bred him.
He is by Caesour out of the one time winner, Where Angels Walk.
The Saumarez mare Where Angels Walk is an Odessa product and only won up to 1200m. She is the dam of Juddering Angel (by Judpot) who won so impressively on debut down the Kenilworth straight course a fortnight ago, also for Ramsden.
A Boy Named Sue has won thrice from 22 starts with 8 places.
He has earned R286 679 in prize money and looks likely to continue to earn during the winter months.
That’s if Joey can find the right races for him.
That was also the final race of a memorable 2012/13 Sizzling Summer Season!
