Naafer a nap bet in the Grade 2 Merchants
Naafer appears a rather exciting young sprinter, and on a day where he has many with genuine winning prospects leaps off the page as one of Mike de Kock’s standouts.
The Australian bred son of Lonhro is officially 1kg under sufferance in the Grade 2 World Sports Betting Merchants, but he actually ran to 107 in his Pinnacle victory last time, but could only be raised to 104 by the Handicappers due to the six-point maximum restriction placed on wins in Plate races.
He was always in control that day, and is now 2.5kg better off with last season’s best male sprinter Bull Valley who was half a length adrift. Both were making their seasonal debuts and should have come on since, but with a paltry 52kg Naafer seems to hold all the aces, and seems set to score the first Graded win of his career.
Of course Bull Valley is no lightweight, and scored back to back Grade 1 wins in KZN at the back end of last season. He carries a hefty 62kg in this handicap, but has certainly earned a 116 rating, and his record of never being unplaced over sprint trips could be extended.
Another intriguing runner is Graduation Day. Joe Soma’s seven year old returned from his latest long rest three weeks ago to score a hard fought win in the Listed Golden Loom.
He only received the minimum 1kg adjustment, and with only 10 runs under his belt could never be termed fully exposed. Anton Marcus doesn’t take many 55kg rides these days, so he obviously believes the winning prospects are real, and the Trippi gelding could come out the most serious danger to Naafer. Best of the rest for me is the Azzie gelding Angel’s Power. Grant van Niekerk won the Charity Mile on Hat Puntano and while winning here may be beyond him, he can earn a cheque. Selections 1) NAAFER 2) GRADUATION DAY 3) BULL VALLEY 4) ANGEL’S POWER