Girl Power! Igugu finds her wings to win the Gr1 J&B Met.
Winning isn’t everything – it is the only thing. This applies most especially on the festival occasions like J&B Met day. The Sporting Post salutes all the winners on the afternoon. And to those who didn’t find their way to the winners’ enclosure, we thank you for making it a special and memorable day.
The big winners were the connections of the magnificent filly Igugu who took the Gr1 J&B Met in a rousing finish. Trainer Justin Snaith was the leading trainer with four winners, while his stable jockey jockey Felix Coetzee rode three winners.
Young stallion Dynasty had a red letter day siring three winners, including the promising Jackson, winner of the Gr1 Investec Cape Derby. Highlands Stud were the leading breeders with three winners.
A race by race pen pic:
Popular! President Of Pop is obscured by second placed Jet Into The Wind(red)
Race 1: R64 400 Tabgold MR 88 Handicap run over 1400m
Winner: President Of Pop
Jockey: Felix Coetzee Trainer: Justin Snaith
Sire: Captain Al Breeder: Alec Foster
Owner:The Hon Mrs G R Foster & Mr A N Foster
The professional pacemaker Entrador led the field into the straight with Chrysalis, who had made good ground from his wide draw, tracking him in second place with the pacy Bois De Var tracking him in third.
Show Us! Money Surger and Piere Strydom are easy winners of the second.
Race 2: R69 000 Touch Tote MR 88 Handicap (F&M) run over 1200m
Winner: Money Surger
Jockey: Piere Strydom Trainer: Piet Steyn
Sire: Surging River Breeder: Zandvliet
Owner: Piet Steyn
Christina led down the unfavourable inside going early as the field fanned out across the track. Daintree Dancer and Naughty Girl made their moves at around the 250m marker with Flaming Alice also threatening. But the master late blaster Piere Strydom was in full flight hard up against the outside rail and he swooped to bring Money Surger home at a ridiculously generous 15-1. The daughter of Surging River cost R3000 as a yearling and has now won over R220 000 in stakes.
The hitherto unbeaten favourite Miss October failed to go on with her effort and produced an awful effort to run out of the money. The dogmatic tipping experts were left with egg on their faces again.
Unbeaten. Agra makes its two out of two for Trippi.
Race 3: R125 000 Schweppes Summer Juvenile Stakes(Listed) run over 1000m
Winner: Agra
Jockey: Felix Coetzee Trainer: Justin Snaith
Sire: Trippi Breeder: Highlands
Owner: Vanashree and Anant Singh & Team Valor International
The fancied Agra was backed into a red hot 4-10 favourite and was never headed as she ran her rather moderate looking opposition off their feet to record her second facile win on the trot. Her stablemate Terminator improved again to run on well for second and his winning turn cannot be far off.
Northern Light. Marshall trained Northern Conquest(green/white) wins a tight finish.
Race 4: R73 600 Grandwest Casino & Entertainment MR 103 Handicap run over 1600m
Winner: Northern Conquest
Jockey: MJ Bylevel Trainer: Vaughan Marshall
Sire: Alado Breeder: Klawervlei Stud
Owner: Miss K Rausing
Sean Cormack took M’Lords Throat to the head of affairs from the jump and the son of Silvano led his field at a fair gallop with Grafton Street and Hammie’s Boy in tow.
The Kotzen colt fell in a hole at around the 300m marker as Brown Penny and Lancelin looked dangerous. With any of 7 seven runners in it with a winning chance at the 200m, Aldo Domeyer slipped Shimmering Flame through down the inside rail and looked a winner. MJ Byleveld had other ideas and riding a determined finish he drove Northern Conquest down the middle to grab a narrow victory – and his second consecutive victory on the trot. The three year old Alado looks to be improving fast and this was a good win against a bunch of hard-knocking older horses.
The list of disappointments here included the Peninsula Handicap winner Polar Bound, the highly rated M’Lords Throat who appears to have problems and Brown Penny who added further questions to the Peninsula Handicap form. The disappointing Soweto Slew showed again that he has not maintained his top-class two year old form.
King Of The Derby! Jackson streaks clear under Karis Teetan.
Race 5: R600 000 Investec Cape Derby (Gr1) run over 2000m
Jockey: Karis Teetan Trainer: BJ Crawford
Sire: Dynasty Breeder:Highlands
Owner: Messrs Ian Longmore and W J C Mitchell
The day’s first Gr1 race turned into a procession of sorts for the brilliant three year old Dynasty colt Jackson, who took over from his chief adversary Variety Club at the 200m marker and drew away to win a superb race.
Mike De Kock’s free-striding Australian import Mushreq made the pace and looked to have provided a perfect cover for Variety Club who tracked him all the way before surging ahead at the 300m marker. But Marcus and the Var colt were no match for the Crawford colt.
Valorific! Ebony Flyer wins the Majorca going away.
Race 6: R500 000 Klawervlei Majorca Stakes (Gr1) run over 1600m
Winner: Ebony Flyer
Jockey: Felix Coetzee Trainer: Justin Snaith
Sire: Jet Master Breeder: WJ Engelbrecht
Owner: Drakenstein Stud, Team Valor International, Vanashree and Anant Singh
Gibraltar Blue went hard early from Trinity House and Frequent Flyer with the fancied Covenant about eight lengths off them. With 200m to run the gigantic Ebony Flyer came forward to challenge Frequent Flyer and their tussle was shortlived as the Snaith filly strode away to win easily.
Both the visiting De Kock filly Welwitschia and the well performed Covenant were never seen with a chance, Covenant reported by her jockey as not striding out.
Race 7:R2,5 million J&B Met (Gr1) run over 2000m
Jockey: Anthony Delpech Trainer: Mike De Kock
Sire: Galileo Breeder: Australian
Owner: Sheikh Mohamed Bin Khalifa Al Maktoum & A J Macdonald
Anton Marcus brought Bravura across from an unfavourable draw to dicatate the pace. The outsider Astro News was snapping at his heels with Fabiani trying to step things up out wide.
Igugu had jumped uncharacteristically sluggishly and she was rambling along in midfield.
Marcus’ tactic appeared to have worked as Bravura found more all the way up the home run with Igugu being switched late. In a rousing finish the champion filly got up in the shadow of the post to win. Run For It ran a cracker down the rail, just pipped for third by Gimmethegreenlight.
Business Class! Divine Jet annihilates his field in the MR 96 Handicap.
Race 8: R73 600 Soccer 6 MR 96 Handicap run over 1200m
Jockey: Karl Neisius Trainer: Dean Kannemeyer
Sire: Jet Master Breeder:Highlands
Owner:Lady MC Laidlaw
Back to his best. Dean Kannemeyer’s much vaunted three year old colt Divine Jet returned to his pre-Guineas brilliance with an emphatic victory in this competitive sprint.
Cap Alright made the early pace but they had no chance with the Kannemeyer flyer and it was left to Shades Of Indigo to squeak past Cap Alright with his usual late dash effort.
Divine Jet has now won four of his five starts.
Black & White! Audrey Rose is guided home by Piere Strydom.
Race 9: R64 400 Gold Circle MR 84 Handicap (F&M) run over 2000m
Jockey: Piere Strydom Trainer: Justin Snaith
Sire: Dynasty Breeder: A N Foster
Owner:Messrs A N Foster and WJC Mitchell
The Mike Bass-trained outsider Mile High led the field through the bend with Piere Strydom tracking the leader on Audrey Rose. As the field turned for home Mile High drifted right out and it was left to Strydom to pinch a winning march.
Ce Loire looked dangerous momentarily but faded late as Feel My Love and Meringue dashed through late.
Top Stayer! Blake wins the Gr2 J&B Reserve Stayers in dazzling style.
Race 10: R300 000 J&B Reserve Stayers(Gr2) run over 2800m
Jockey: Karl Neisius Trainer: Dean Kannemeyer
Sire: Dynasty Breeder:Pee Bee Stud
Owner: D L Brugman, R W Deacon, R Kay & I M Rudden
Hospitality led the field at a solid gallop right around the course. In the home straight the field converged on the leader and fanned out as Orchard House looked a likely with many others finishing.
In a grandstand finish Karl Neisius got the gallant Blake to fly up late on the outside to hold Two Strikes in a great finish to close the day.
