Ryan Munger guides Dansili Express to a smart win (JC Photos)
The horse nobody really wanted has found his niche in the dusty wastes of Flamingo Park. The Australian-bred Dansili Express was an emphatic winner of the R100 000 RA Diamond Stayers on Saturday and owner-trainer Bill Human must be feeling very satisfied. The R1 million purchase has been trained by three top men in Mike De Kock, Joey Ramsden and Joey Soma, at various times in his career.
Human has got the 6yo gelding firing on all cylinders and he remained unbeaten over the Flamingo Park 2200m at his seventh start in the region.
Dansili Express was an expensive Jooste purchase and won his fourth start over the Turffontein 1800m when trained by Mike De Kock.
Two blank runs followed after which he was shipped off to Joey Ramsden at Milnerton. Nothing much happened there in four starts and that astute horseman Joey Soma had a bash before he eventually landed up with Bill Human in Flamingo Park.
Well ridden by apprentice Ryan Munger, the result was never in doubt and the good-looking gelding looks a horse worth following over ground in the Northern Cape.
Stone Reeves and the Dorrie Sham-trained former Gauteng galloper Indian River vied for favouritism but it was Cliffie Miller’s topweight African Gladiator who was bravely taken to lead early by Marco Van Rensburg.
The son of Modern Day led the chase all the way around with Dansili Express in close attendance.
African Gladiator continued to roll at the 300m marker but Ryan Munger had other plans and he sent Dansili Express into the lead.
With his 12kg weight pull the gelding pulled clear and despite hanging in in the final stages he held the gallant African Gladiator to a five lengths winning margin in a time of 150,82 secs.
Indian River stayed on well to finish third.
The consistent Stone Reeves ran a rare poor race and finished out of the quartet after going very one-paced up the straight.
Dansili Express has won 3 races with 4 places from 18 starts and R171 000 in stakes.
He was a R1 million purchase by Mayfair Speculators at the 2010 Emperors Palace Ready To Run Sale.
He was bred by Klawervlei Stud, New South Wales, by Dansili out of the Sadler’s Wells mare Amelinaa, who won her only start in the UK.
Dansili was the leading Northern Hemisphere sire by Gr1 wins worldwide in 2013.
He sired 41 individual stakes performers in 2013, including six Gr1 winners of 10 Gr1 races – Dank, Flintshire, Foreteller, Laughing, The Fugue and Winsili.
