Delpech flies in style
ANTHONY Delpech was lyrical about the condition and design of Ascot racecourse after riding for The Rest Of The World team in the Shergar Cup on Saturday.
South Africa’s reigning champion jockey rode the John Best-trained Glenys The Menace to victory in the fifth race over a mile-and-a-half.
He also had a second and a fourth, which saw him finishing fourth in the individual standings, while his team finished second to Great Britain and Ireland.
It was the first time Delpech had ever ridden in England.
He said, “It was unbelievable, it is one of the best tracks I have ever ridden on. The condition of the grass was immaculate, it was like a carpet, and the design of the course with the downhills and uphills, and also the parade ring and grandstand, it was just out of this world.”
Atmosphere
Delpech spoke also of the tremendous on course atmosphere and also of the camaraderie between the jockeys riding in the Shergar Cup.
Delpech showed his class in scoring a win as race riding in the U.K. is completely different to race riding in South Africa and takes a while to get used to.
The pace tends to be faster and the horses have to be fitter as the ground is generally more difficult to go through compared to South Africa where it is generally “on top”.
Reserving enough for the finish is of the essence, so good hands, balance and tactical nous are of high importance.
Delpech showed all three when producing Glenys The Menace, who was one of four fillies in the ten horse field, with a strong late run on the outside to get up and win by half-a-length. She returned odds of 8-1. Trainer Best had been confident as she had finished a close second just two days earlier when staying on over a mile and two furlongs at Sandown. Delpech managed to get to Scottsville in time on Sunday to ride the Dean Kannemeyer-trained Silvano colt Silva’s Bullet in the BSA August Million Colts and Geldings over 1 400m.
The colt had opened 17-10 and drifted out to 32-10 in the face of strong support for the eventual winner Broadway Trip.
Silva’s Bullet showed a good turn of foot in the straight from a handy position and hit the front, but had no answer to the finish of Broadway Trip. Delpech was not unhappy at all with the 3,25 length third and said, “He needs further.”
He is a half-brother to the useful Kannemeyer-trained Solid Speed, who won eight races including a Grade 2 over 1 900m and a Grade 3 over 2 400m, and being by Silvano will continue to improve. He is a horse to watch in the classics this season, especially in the Investec Cape Derby and Daily News 2000. Delpech also rode for Kannemeyer in the BSA August Million Fillies and his mount Pearl Glow finished fifth.
Unusual
Delpech’s championship winning season just past was unusual in that he was out with a broken collar bone for over a month in December and January.
His 195 winners ridden at a strike rate of 22,01% was not as good as his return last season when he was runner up with 210 winners at a strike rate of 23,57%.
Nevertheless he won his third South African Jockeys Championships by a comfortable 43 winners from Greg Cheyne. His winners included four Grade 1 victories, one Grade 2, two Grade 3s, four Listed races and five Non-Black Type events. He was the leading rider at Greyville during the season with 85 wins from 389 mounts at a strike rate of 21,85%, beating Anton Marcus, who had 78 wins from 312 rides at a strike rate of 25%.
Delpech was second only to Keagan de Melo at Scottsville, riding 45 winners from 196 mounts at a strike rate of 22,96% to the latter’s 48 winners from 263 rides at a strike rate of 18,25%.
Marcus had 43 winners at Scottsville ridden at a strike rate of 25,6%.
Delpech rode 30 winners at Turffontein at a strike rate of 17,05%. His 32 winners at The Vaal were ridden at a high strike rate of 34,04%. He rode three winners at Kenilworth at a strike rate of 11,11%. He also had four rides at Fairview but no winners. Delpech has certainly had an August to remember for besides his Shergar Cup exploits he won the coveted Green Jacket at the Gold Circle Racing Masters golf tournament, which is held annually at The Wild Coast in the week after the Gold Cup meeting.