Ilha Bela
The power pair of Mike De Kock and owner Mary Slack will be contemplating the future of Ilha Bela, who produced what appeared to be a below-par run in the Summer Cup. She crossed the line six lengths adrift of Yorker and Master Sabina. Again, however, the formbook brings us closer to the truth.
With last year’s Summer Cup result taken as a yardstick, Ilha Bela arguably ran pretty close to her best on a collateral line through Wagner, Knock on Wood and Whiteline Fever. She was impeccably turned out and had her ears pricked striding purposefully to the starting gates. A coat of shiny, silver grey proved her well-being.
Ilha Bela’s followers may argue that she ran almost four lengths below her capabilities on a line through her meeting with Master Sabina in a Conditions race on 23 October. But they will have to concede that Master Sabina was on the comeback trial after a rest. He’s clearly made terrific improvement in the weeks that have passed since. Their relation in blood aside, Ilha Bela’s physical resemblance to Ilha Da Vitoria placed her precariously in the spotlight of comparison with her dam. The restless pundits who sought to compare them on a scale of ability can now focus their attention elsewhere.
We can safely accept that Ilha Bela is not as good as her illustrious dam, who destroyed her male rivals in the Summer Cup seven years ago. In saying that, Ilha Bela was far from disgraced in defeat. In due course she, too, will be a marvellous addition to the paddocks of Wilgerbosdrift. Ilha Bela finished within a respectable margin behind a quartet of top quality, up-and-coming younger male runners from Geoff Woodruff’s bang-in-form yard. She was just two lengths off this year’s equally formidable SA Derby winner and multiple Graded-placed Wylie Hall and only a short-head behind last year’s Cup winner Wagner – he was over seven lengths ahead of her last year and held her by only a whisker this time.
Indeed, Ilha Bela’s connections have every reason to be proud of their game little grey mare. She has given her many supporters a good series of thrills by putting her heart into her runs, and with her likeness to her freakishly talented dam bringing back some of this racing decade’s fondest memories.
