Filly to display Dutch courage in Challenge

Jack Milner

It is the World Sports Betting (WSB) Championships Finale at Turffontein on Saturday which sees the running of two Grade 1 races, four Grade 2 races and one Grade 3 event.

The meeting brings an end to the Highveld autumn season and what a climax this will be.  

Topping the card is the WSB Premier’s Champions Challenge over 2000m on the Standside track which is seen as one of the “Big Four” races in South Africa.

There is also the Jonsson Workwear ComputaForm Sprint can be compared to the men’s 100m sprints in the Olympic Games, which although over in under 10 seconds, gives the victor the honour of being designated the fastest man in the world.

The equine version at Turffontein is the fastest Grade 1 race over the minimum distance in the country, borne out by the course record of 54.96 seconds, set by Mythical Flight in 2007.

The Grade 2 races on the day comprise the SA Nursery and SA Fillies Nursery over 1160m for juveniles, as well as the Gerald Rosenberg Stakes over 2000m, and the Camellia Stakes over 1160m, both for fillies and mares.

The Grade 3 race is the Gold Bowl over the marathon trip of 3200m.

All of these races are sponsored by World Sports Betting.

Other than a marvellous day’s racing, the main attraction is the R1-million Pick 6 carryover which is likely to reach R7 million.

As there are no hot-pot favourites at this meeting, the Pick 6 is likely to return a sizeable profit for anybody who can successfully put it all together.

But back to the Premier’s Champion Challenge.

More than half the field in this year’s race have already won at least one Grade 1 race and it is run at weight-for-age terms.

The main pointer to this race is the Grade 2 Colorado King Stakes over the course and distance, and a number of horses have managed to pull of the double. This year it was four-year-old filly Rain In Holland who bounced back to her best to win the Colorado King Stakes and she is, at the time of writing, the 3-1 favourite to win the Champions Challenge.

This Sean Tarry-trained filly won the Wilgerbosdrift Triple Tiara last year and then went on to win the Grade 2 Gerald Rosenberg Stakes on Champions Day 2022. The plan was to send her to Durban to firstly contest the Grade 1 Woolavington 2000 and then on to the Hollywoodbets Durban July.

Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan and an issue with her oesophagus resulted in surgery for Rain In Holland. It did take its toll and she needed almost a year to get back to her best form.  

Her victory in the Colorado King Stakes was at the expense of stablemate Nebraas who she beat easily by 2.25 lengths. However, that form has been franked as Nebraas came out to win the Grade 3 Caradoc Gold Cup just one week later.

The one concern is that she got a soft lead in the Colorado King Stakes and she is not likely to be allowed to dictate on her own terms this time.

However, that should not really be a major concern because she is not one of those runners who has to be in front and can quite comfortably come from off them.

Rain In Holland has a lot more to recommend her. She is the best weighted runner, has won eight of her 13 runs at the course and is unbeaten over the course and distance.

Richard Fourie rode her to victory in all three legs of the Triple Tiara and he is back in the irons this time.

The word from those who have been keeping an eye on her is that she is putting up some top-class work back at home.

There are two three-year-olds in the field and here is a lot to like about Billy Bowlegs in particular. Alec Laird’s charge was runner-up in the Grade 1 WSB SA Derby last time but may have found the 2450m a touch too far.

He will enjoy the drop in trip and with Gavin Lerena up will be highly competitive.

Trainer Joe Soma gives both his runners, Red Saxon and three-year-old Rule By Force, big chances in this field but of the pair, it could be last year’s WSB SA Classic winner, Red Saxon, who is the better of the pair.

“I watched the replay of his last race (the HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes) and nothing went his way,” said Soma. “The pace was all muddled and that didn’t work for him.

“I’ve taken the blinkers off, and his work is very good. I’m expecting a big run,” said Soma.

S’manga Khumalo takes the ride once again.    

Another with a claim is Puerto Manzano, winner of the Grade 1 Summer Cup over this course and distance last November.

Trained by Johan Janse van Vuuren, the Argentinian-bred gelding followed that up with a victory in the Grade 3 London News Stakes before given a short rest. His comeback run in the Grade 3 Hawaii Stakes over 1400m was very disappointing but there were valid excuses and it is best forgotten.

However, Puerto Manzano ran a much-improved race in the Grade 1 HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes over 1600m when beaten just four lengths and will much prefer the return to 2000m.

Log-leading jockey Keagan de Melo takes the ride.

Jack Milner’s selections

Race 1: 10 Cala Muretta, 11 Phantom Express, 3 Copper John, 7 Red Bomber

Race 2: 3 Holocene, 1 Max The Magician, 8 Dakota Cat, 2 Battle Of Kursk

Race 3: 1 Mo The Man, 2 Free Movement, 4 Kambulu, 7 Royal Guide

Race 4: 4 Leaving Las Vegas, 2 Cullinan Blue, 1 American Graffiti, 7 Mrs Geriatrix

Race 5: 2 Guy Gibson, 5 Lucky Lad, 7 Amber Rock, 8 Ripple Effect

Race 6: 9 Princess Calla, 2 William Robertson, 4 Isivunguvungu, 10 Sheela

Race 7: 11 Rain In Holland, 12 Billy Bowlegs, 6 Red Saxon, 4 Nebraas

Race 8: 8 Kiss Me Captain, 3 Stiptelik, 5 Cold Fact, 4 Sweet Pepper

Race 9: 8 Bless My Stars, 10 Emirate Gina, 2 Light Of The Moon, 3 Gilded Butterfly

Race 10: 1 Shangani, 3 Tabebuia, 2 Arumugam, 7 Apache Fighterl

BEST BET

Race 10 No 1 Shangani

VALUE BET

Race 5 No 2 Guy Gibson

BEST SWINGER

Race 1 10x11

BIPOT

R324

Leg 1: 1, 3, 8

Leg 2: 1, 2, 4

Leg 3: 1, 2, 4

Leg 4: 2, 5

Leg 5: 2, 4, 9

Leg 6: 11, 12

PLACE ACCUMULATOR

R216

Leg 1: 1, 2

Leg 2: 1, 2, 4

Leg 3: 2, 5

Leg 4: 2, 4, 9

Leg 5: 11, 12

Leg 6: 3, 5, 8

Leg 7: 8

PICK 6

R1440

Leg 1: 1, 2, 4, 7

Leg 2: 2, 5, 6, 7, 8

Leg 3: 1, 2, 4, 9, 10, 12

Leg 4: 6, 11, 12

Leg 5: 3, 4, 5, 8

Leg 6: 8

JACKPOT 1

R360

Leg 1: 2, 5, 6, 7, 8

Leg 2: 1, 2, 4, 9, 10, 12

Leg 3: 6, 11, 12

Leg 4: 3, 4, 5, 8

JACKPOT 2

R144

Leg 1: 1, 2, 4, 9, 10, 12

Leg 2: 6, 11, 12

Leg 3: 3, 4, 5, 8

Leg 4: 8, 10