“He is a smart horse and will run well,” was the succint preview from trainer Joey Ramsden prior to Table Bay (speed score 103 +) obliterating rivals in the Cape Classic. It was an imposing performance – after racing handy he kicked clear of the field down the straight to win by a wide margin. Elevated (s/s 95) clunked up for a well-beaten second, in receipt of five kilos, which confirms Table Bay’s superiority. The winner should be even more effective over a longer route, which may spell trouble for wannabe challengers in the Guineas and Derby. Still, the season has barely started and there are bound to be other top class horses that will emerge as legitimate contenders for the Classics.
Mike de Kock has a tremendous record in Graded races all over the world, and he seldom miscues when sending his top picks down to Cape Town. Ektifaa duly won a false run Choice Carriers‘ using stalk and pounce tactics under Callum Murray, with Sail running on late for second. The stiff horse of the race was Red Light Girl who jumped a shadow near the line when contesting the lead. The distraction saw her miss a place – a rueful Justin Snaith complained, “You only get one chance here at a Grade 2 for 3 year olds over 1400m.”
Nebula (s/s 100) was strategically placed by trainer Brett Crawford in the Grade 3 Algoa Cup at Fairview, sneaking in with a low weight. Reprising a form pattern that had seen him win before second run after a freshening, the Silvano gelding proved best under a perfect ride from Richard Fourie to hold off Captain Splendid’s (s/s 99) late charge. The place slots went to Alghadeer and Krambambulli, with both geldings’ attaining solid speed figs of 98.