Puget a sound runner
FITNESS: BEST-WEIGHTED RUNNERS RESTED AND COULD NEED THE RUN
Orchid Street is ideally suited to crack her maiden at last.
Fitness is the issue with which bettors will have to contend when looking for the winner of Race 6 at Turffontein tomorrow, a Pinnacle Stakes over 1800m on the Inside track.
With the summer season almost upon us, many trainers are using these races to prepare their runners for some lucrative feature races. So, despite that fact that they may be very well treated under the race conditions, many of them could be in need of the run.
As a result, the selection is Puget Sound who we know is fit and well. He is from the in-form Mike de Kock stable and has a top jockey up in the form of former champion S’manga Khumalo.
This five-year-old gelding is the not best handicapped runner but neither is he that badly off in an open race. Only three runners are better handicapped and all of them are fillies who have good staying form. Topping the list is talented Seville Orange who ran third in the Grade 2 Wilgerbosdrift SA Oaks over 2450m at Turffontein and then went on to cause an upset at 20-1 when winning the Grade 3 Oaks over 2400m at Scottsville. She has not run since and while she could be in need of the run, trainer Weiho Marwing could have her nice and fresh and who knows what she could do in this field.
Puget Sound has yet to run over 1800m but he will be having his third run after a rest and loves this Inside track.
Diamond Dancer represents the combustible combination of trainer Paul Peter and jockey Warren Kennedy who are currently setting the track alight with any horse with whom they team up. The six-year-old son of Kahal has won two of his last three starts and has a record of three wins and two places in seven starts over the distance. He cannot be left out of any bet. Geoff Woodruff has three runners in Ali Bon Dubai, Secret Potion and Sunshine Silk and it is the former, who benefits from a 1.5kg apprentice allowance who could be the pick of the three. He is quite a versatile sort and has yet to be unplaced over this distance.
Also consider Master Magic who, although has not won on this course, has been placed in four out of five starts. In fact, he has placed in all three starts over the course and distance.
One horse who has been expensive to follow is Orchid Street, but this could finally be his day. He is an honest sort who rarely runs a bad race but has not been able to get his nose in front where it matters. He has run 12 times for eight places and some of those were behind very good horses. Two runs back, racing over 1200m at this course, he finished a 1.75-length second behind Tallinn, who has gone on to win again most impressively.
He also has not had the best of luck with draws but when he lines up in Race 1 tomorrow over 1200m, he will jump from barrier No 4 in this Workriders Maiden Plate. He will be ridden by Sam Mosia, one of the most talented and experienced of the work riders, and back to 1200m he will prove very hard to beat.
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