Jack Milner: While one can take issue with weight, draw and staying ability, one cannot argue with class.
It is his one factor that makes Twice To Heaven the horse to beat in a Race 5 at Fairview on Friday, a Classified Stakes for fillies and mares over 1600m on the Polytrack.
This Sharon Kotzen-trained daughter of Twice Over has run seven times for two wins and five places, but it was her last start, in the Racing Association Plate, that really stands out.
In that event, over 1400m on the turf track, she finished a 3.25-length second behind Norton Sound, with some really decent horses behind her.
The average merit rating of that race was 90, which makes it a far stronger field than she will meet in this event which has an average merit rating of 66.
The only horse to have raced again from that Racing Association Plate is fourth-placed Sound Check who ended up another 1.50 lengths behind Twice To Heaven – and she came out to win her next start, beating Bad Habit by two lengths.
Twice To Heaven does have a few hurdles to overcome on Friday as she has yet to be tried over 1600m and she has to jump from the widest draw at No 14. That will leave jockey Luyolo Mxothwa with some work to do but there is no question he will be riding the class horse in the field who also happens to be marginally the best-weighted runner.
She is also proven on both turf and Polytrack so the course holds little fear for her.
Lollapalooza has had three runs since joining Alan Greeff’s yard in Port Elizabeth, all on the Polytrack. While she has placed in all three, a win at Fairview has eluded her but she will be fitted with blinkers this time and that could help her.
However, she will have to give 2kg to Twice To Heaven and that could be a concern. Greg Cheyne takes the ride again.
Jack Milner’s selections
Race 1: 1 Quenanza, 8 Jungle Promise, 10 Savannah Winter, 7 French Joy
Race 2: 7 Buttercup, 6 On The Warpath, 3 Jet Mirage, 5 V V Power
Race 3: 1 Our World, 2 Inbetween Dreams, 13 Romanoff, 6 Make It Happen
Race 4: 4 Pacific Duke, 5 Al Qaasim, 7 Falling For You, 3 Storm Commander
Race 5: 5 Twice To Heaven, 1 Lollapalooza, 12 Abia, 7 La Duchesse
Race 6: 3 Capernaum, 10 Super Noir, 1 Full Score, 16 Cana