Hat’s off to Puntano and charity
THE AZZIE-TRAINED HORSE WON R150 000 FOR THE ANIMAL ANTI-CRUELTY LEAGUE
The comeback is always better than the setback. This rings so true for the Mike Azzie-trained Hat Puntano, a four-year-old colt who silenced his critics by cruising to a noteworthy 0.75-length victory at Turffontein, outclassing a competitive field of runners in this year’s Peermont Emperors Palace Charity Mile (Grade 2).
His record currently boasts two Argentinian Grade 1 wins and a South Africa Grade 2 triumph from six career outings. The win was a big payday for the Animal Anti-Cruelty League, who took home the biggest prize of the 16 charities invited to participate in the event, R150 000.
“Not only is he a magnificent specimen, he also has tons of ability” gushed Azzie afterwards.
The Argentinean-import was written off by many following a disappointing performance in his debut on South African soil. As a result, he paid a mouth-watering R16.10 a TAB Win, a price we are unlikely to see again.
Hat Puntano didn’t have the best of starts.
Said jockey Grant van Niekerk: “He cantered down on the wrong leg, which worried me. But he showed he is a top horse in the way he came back.”
Irish Pride (Donavan Mansour) led early with Top Shot (Marco van Rensburg) on his heels and 28-10 favourite New Predator (Gavin Lerena) beautifully settled in third. Azzie’s charge raced on the rail in eighth place.
Approaching the 400m mark Irish Pride tried to maintain the lead, but it was Hat Puntano who moved up impressively as New Predator began to buckle under the pressure.
Azzie’s runner kept finding more and ended up winning rather comfortably.
The Sean Tarry-trained duo Social Order (Lyle Hewitson) and French Navy (S’manga Khumalo) were both flying late and are worth following in future. They finished second and third respectively with New Predator fourth..
When asked what the next move would be for Hat Puntano, it didn’t take long for Azzie to respond, stating: “Cape Town, I’m aiming him for the Queen’s Plate.”