Ormond Ferraris reached a milestone of 2500 winners when Romany Prince (s/s 100) clinched the Drum Star Handicap. The veteran trainer has been around seemingly forever at Turffontein and is an expert conditioner. His charge, a three year old son of Kahal, scored 101 when defeating Malal el Malook in December, and bounced back here to record another triple digit fig after two tame efforts from wide draws.
Olma (speed score 103) won the Grade 3 Kings Cup in a deluge at Greyville on Friday night. She handled the adverse conditions with aplomb, adding to an excellent record at that course when coasting by Mumsy’s Jet (s/s 98) for her seventh win from 17 starts. Jockey Ian Sturgeon has done particularly well on this filly – this was their fourth win together from nine outings, including a last start romp in the Flamboyant Stakes that was highlighted in a January Interbet newsletter.
Earlier, progressive sprinter Captain Alfredo (s/s 104) got the better of talented but unsound Viva La Var (s/s 101). The winner injured his back which hindered his career as a youngster, but has really come to light after recovering, winning four of five starts since spring 2015.
Tar Heel (s/s 97+) is another smart sprinter. Adding a tongue tie to his equipment and turning back to the short cuts was the solution. He fended off a promising young filly, Andre Nel’s entry Hoist The Mast (s/s 96) in a Kenilworth scurry. Captains Flame (s/s 94) is also from the razor-sharp Nel stable and seems worth following too after smoothly winning a MR 86 handicap at only her third outing.