Danie Toerien
Trainer Fanie Bronkhorst caused a bit of an upset in the first leg of the R5,97-million Pick 6 at Turffontein when his filly Rockingthetimeaway took the honours in Race 4, a Maiden Plate for fillies and mares.
While many bettors fancied Ashley Fortune's Poursomesugaronme, they must have been ecstatic to see this daughter of Captain Of All jump well and build uup a 2-length lead under Ryan Munger.
But Gavin Lerena kept a cool head and asked Rockingthetimeaway to kick at just the right time, which she did for a well-earned first victory.
"Her previous run over 1160 here was a very good run and she was just pipped at the line," said Bronkhorst after the race.
"Based on that we expected her to be a big runner today. Gavin rode her perfectly and everything came together.
"It's a lekker race to win with that R40,000 bonus," said Bronkhorst, referring to the bonus paid by the Racehorse Owners Association.
Racing presenter Lyall Cooper also thanked Bronkhorst for commenting on his runners before a race meeting.
"The punters are a big part of this game and they need the info."
After the first leg there were 784,691 live tickets with the provisional payout set at R7,60.
One filly to keep an eye on in future is the Joe Soma-trained Avoontoast. She ran a cracker to finish less than half a length behind Rockingthetimeaway and had she jumped better, she may well have one.