Jackson may be the best three-year-old in South Africa after he lived up to a ton of pre-race hype and ran out the fluent winner of the Investec Cape Derby over 2000m at Kenilworth on Saturday, especially as there is every indication that he will get even better still.
Jackson had made rapid progress through the ranks ahead of the Derby and impressed most spectators when winning the Listed Politician Stakes over 1800m three weeks earlier. Every Tom, Dick and Harriet in Cape Town would have told you that he couldn’t get beaten in the Derby and he was heavily supported from an ante-post call of 16/10 to start as the 15/20 favourite in his first ever attempt at Graded level. Gr 1 Cape Guineas winner and Queen’s Plate runner-up Variety Club had the proven form and was the 19/10 second favourite despite considerable doubt as to whether a colt with his pedigree would stay 2000m. The other ten runners were largely ignored by punters and much-vaunted Potala Palace was allowed to start as a 9/1 third favourite.
Mushreq soon found his way to the head of affairs and set a reasonable early tempo from Stone Pine, who passed horses to race in second spot ahead of Variety Club and Alula Borealis. Silver Haven and Jackson were next in line, with Tribal Dance and Potala Palace further back as Agarkar brought up the rear. Stone Pine was already under pressure turning for home, leaving Mushreq with a decent lead coming to the 400m pole, but Variety Club was starting to loom up down the inside as Jackson edged out for his run. Only two horses mattered from more than 200m out as Variety Club tried to get first run on Jackson, but the favourite was only starting to really gather momentum passing the furlong pole and asserted himself inside the last 100m, responding to Karis Teetan’s urgings and stretching away to win by two lengths from Variety Club,
Tribal Dance stayed on to finish third, a further 3.75 lengths behind Variety Club, with Potala Palace appearing to have every chance before taking fourth spot, less than half-a-length further behind Tribal Dance. The latter may have been a completely unconsidered outsider, but he’d finished 2.75 lengths behind Jackson on 2.5 kgs better terms in the Politician Stakes and basically confirmed that form here, proving himself to be much better than his 88 merit rating. Potala Palace may be worth one more chance to prove himself better than this effort suggests, but he doesn’t appeal as being in the same class as either Jackson or Variety Club, who seemed to lay the stamina doubts to rest by easily beating all except the impressive winner even if he didn’t exactly justify his 118 merit rating in the process. In truth, Variety Club is probably at his absolute best over less than the Derby distance, but time may tell a different story and Jackson could quite simply be a champion in the making.
Jackson is trained by the very much in-form Brett Crawford, who remarked that, “it’s humbling to work with a horse of his calibre.” He went on to compliment Karis Teetan for having Jackson “in a beautiful spot.” This was already the second Gr 1 success of 2012 for the Crawford/Teetan team, who combined with Thunder Dance to grab the Paddock Stakes three weeks earlier. Thunder Dance runs in the same Ian Longmore colours as Jackson, who is co-owned by Longmore and Jack Mitchell. Winners of the Cape Derby have a fine record in the Vodacom Durban July, with Big City Life last achieving the double in 2009 and Jackson’s sire Dynasty having himself pulled it off in 2003, and Jackson looks every inch a July prospect himself. There is every indication that he will continue to improve, and he could be some kind of a horse come the KZN winter season.
Jackson is the second foal and second winner produced from American-bred Cozzene mare Moonlit Prairie, who won one race over 1600m. Bred at Highlands Farms Stud and bought for R1 million at the 2010 National Two-Year-Old Sale, Jackson has won four times from as many starts since he finished a disappointing fifth as the odds-on favourite when he made his debut over 1200m in September. He has earned R531 205 in stakes, with the promise of a whole lot more to come.
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Investec Cape Derby (SAf-G1) (1/28)
Kenilworth, South Africa, January 28, R600.000, 2000m, turf, good, 2.03.54 (CR 2.02.10).
JACKSON (SAF), 58.0, b c 3, Dynasty (SAF) – Moonlit Prairie by Cozzene. Owner I W Longmore and W J C Mitchell; breeder Highlands Farms (SAF); trainer B J Crawford; jockey K Teetan (R375.000)
Variety Club (SAF), 58.0, ch c 3, Var – La Massine (SAF) by Secret Prospector
Tribal Dance (SAF), 58.0, b c 3, Tiger Dance – Navajo Angel (AUS) by Vettori (IRE)
Margins: 2, 3¾, ½
Also ran: Potala Palace (SAF) 58.0, Mushreq (AUS) 58.0, Solar Captain (SAF) 58.0, Alula Borealis (SAF) 58.0, Silver Haven (SAF) 58.0, Punta Arenas (SAF) 58.0, Agarkar (SAF) 58.0, Changingoftheguard (SAF) 58.0, Stone Pine (SAF) 58.0
