Strike it rich with Strydom
FAMILY BUSINESS: YOUNGER SONS AND DAUGHTERS STARTING TO COME TO THE FORE Twenty One looks the stand-out bet on Turffontein card
We have just started a new season and right now it is the calm before the storm. Everybody is taking a break before the start of the Highveld Spring Season which keeps going all the way through to the SANSUI Summer Cup on 25 November.
Despite riding last weekend I still have a few niggling injuries and will still be off for a couple of weeks. All things being equal I will be back in business on Thursday 17 August.
We have all the award ceremonies this month where the champions of the 2016/17 season will be crowned and then we start looking for the new stars of the sport.
On that subject we are seeing a number of new human stars making names for themselves. From 1 August Adam Azzie became a full partner with his dad, Mike, and is now the fourth generation of the Azzie family to hold a trainer’s licence. It started with greatgrandfather George, the baton then passed to his son, Herbie, the Mike and now to Adam.
Of course, he is not the only regeneration of the trainer’s ranks. We also have Timothy and Lucinda Woodruff, Mathew de Kock, Adam Marcus, as well as Chesney and Gareth van Zyl,
These guys have done a lot of work behind the scenes with their dads. It has to be an advantage to have a successful father as you can couple the input of their years of wisdom with a younger person who is open to new training methods. It is healthy for the sport of horseracing to have new generations going forward. It shows that once it is in the blood, you battle to get it out.
We race at Turffontein tomorrow and the going is still very firm and fast so once again, it could be wise to lean towards those who can get well placed in the early stages.
Race 1 is over 1160m and the horse with the right form is The Puma but he has not raced for six months.
He probably will be fit enough for the occasion. His danger could be Wellspring. There are a couple of unraced horses so also keep an eye on the betting.
Race 2 is a handicap over 1000m and arguably the horse with the strongest form is Laurent Du Var who is three years old. Unfortunately it is difficult to compare the form of different generations at this stage of the season so for the Place Accumulator you might have to consider Spring Steel, Isphan and Captain’s Girl as back up.
It might be worth including all of them as most of the runners have winning chances.
Race 3 is a Maiden Plate where your horse with the best form is Skiminac. He should improve over the extra distance and this more testing course. Unfortunately he has a shocking draw and that is why we need to add in Collabro who is not well drawn either. So the third horse to include in the PA is Justify who is well drawn. For the Pick 6 the other possibilities are Tapenzee, Dancing Rebel and Imperial Ounce.
Race 4 is a fillies’ handicap over 1600m and my first choice is Always A Lady. She won two in a row before her last start and in that her last start over 2000m she could have found the distance too far. Her dangers are Sim-Alley Bank and Teenage Dream.
For the Pick 6 you could easily consider the field as this race is very competitive.
Race 5 is a Plate race and your best merit rated horses should come out on top. This time around I will agree with that format and make B Twenty One the horse to beat. She is the best handicapped runner, has excellent form and we will banker her in all bets.
Race 6 is a handicap over 1400m where the draw plays a big part. I have found two horses on form who both have the luxury of decent draws and they are Kings Archer and Danza. My preference is for Danza as the testing Turffontein track should be right up his alley.
Kings Archer is coming down in class and the fact he has had bad draws in the past made life difficult for him. Those two should be good enough for the Place Accumulator but for the Pick 6 take as many as possible. I would consider especially Cumberland and Yankee Captain.
Race 7 is another fillies’ handicap and again draws play a big part. That is why I like High Seas Beauty who has both the draw and the form to win this race. She is a possible Place Accumulator banker but as she has over raced previously
it could be wise to include one more, and I’m leaning towards Rouge Allure, with Gold Cup winning jockey Weichong Marwing in the irons.
Other inclusions for the Pick 6 are Kirkconnel Lass and Dame Kelly, who has just turned three and could improve a lot more. If you feel those are not enough then you will need the field.
Race 8 is another handicap for fillies where my fancies are Spring Indeed, Beckoning, Fish River Canyon and Green Crest. Choose three of those for the PA and for the Pick 6 put in as many as your pocket will allow.