Woodruff goes for his sixth Summer Cup win
In the six years he’s trained at Randjesfontein Geoff Woodruff has experienced enough Summer Cup success to know his twin spearhead from four stable runners – Master Sabina and Deo Juvente – can between them provide an unprecedented fourth consecutive triumph in the Sansui Summer Cup at Turffontein on Saturday.
The pair fought out a memorable finish to the R2million race 12 months ago, when Master Sabina won by long nose.
And it’s entirely feasible history could repeat itself at 5.10pm on Saturday, as both are going into battle off what their trainer believes are ideal preparations.
It wasn’t the case last year when Master Sabina went to post a gallop short, but still managed to fend off his younger stablemate under a classic Gavin Lerena ride.
Now the Jet Master gelding is, at seven, the joint second-oldest contender in the 20-runner field.
Woodruff, who landed two Summer Cups out of his original base at the Vaal and is looking for a sixth victory overall in the Grade 1 race, says: “Master Sabina’s preparation has gone much better than last year when we were very unsure of whether we had him fit enough.
“I leant towards Deo Juvente, who was flying, but Master Sabina beat him a short head.”
There has been no repeat of those hiccups this year.
“Master Sabina has had four grass gallops and a race at the Vaal, in which he finished second to Master Switch.
“He’s pleased me in his work, looks very well in his coat and is much closer to his fighting weight.
“He’s what I call a Gary Player seven-year-old.
“He might be a year older, but Gavin gets on incredibly well with him.
“He can still be competitive,” said the trainer.
Woodruff has brought Deo Juvente off the injury list and is encouraged by his third placing in the Charity Mile at the beginning of the month.
Of the Trippi gelding he comments: “He sustained a nasty cut to a stifle in Cape Town that was nine inches long. “It was a huge setback right before the Met.
“It explains his poor runs here in the winter, but the Charity Mile was a nice comeback over a trip that’s short of his best.
“We have Anton Marcus in the saddle and for me he is one of the greatest riders this country has produced.
“He said that when I ran Deo over 2000m we would see the best of him and that’s exactly what happened here a year ago.”
Yorker and Louis The King preceded Master Sabina as Cup winners for Woodruff, who confesses he loves to target his best horses at the race, more so than any of the other marquee contests in the South African calendar.
He continues: “I always try to get them into the Summer Cup, it’s such a great raceday and everyone is up for it. It’s a bit like the Johannesburg Met.”
The Woodruff challenge is completed by Master Switch and Master ‘N Commander.
“I’m pleased we have Delpech on Master Switch, who had to win at the Vaal to get into the Cup,” he says.
“He’s a roughie but I’m leaning towards him as the better of these two.
“He’s drawn No 18, which is the same gate as Deo last year so it’s not impossible.
“Turffontein is such a fair track.
“There’s plenty of room and they tend to fan out.
“But when he beat Master Sabina in his prep he was much the more forward.”
Of Master ‘N Commander he observes: “2000m is the absolute ceiling for him and he has to be ridden as a nonstayer, stone cold.
“Last time over 1800m he was trapped three deep and raced much too handily.
“But like the other three he’s thrown a perfect blood count and that’s particularly important at this time of year when viruses lurk and can be contracted no matter what precautions you take.”