Pace the key for Persian Rug
HE pace, or possibly a lack of it, could prove a major headache for punters searching for the winner of the Open Handicap (F&M) that heads the card at Scottsville this afternoon. Only seven runners are due to face the starter over 1 950m and tactics are likely to play a major role in the outcome.
Anthony Delpech, most often aboard a runner from the Dean Kannemeyer yard, will in all likelihood have had the choice of either Little Chapel or Playboy Buddy for Kannemeyer but has instead opted for the Mike de Kock-trained Persian Rug.
The strapping daughter of Ideal World was possibly unlucky not to have won the Gr1 Thekwini Stakes as a two-year-old after pecking badly 50m out, just when a likely win was on the cards.
That juvenile crop has subsequently proven little more than average and Persian Rug’s form since then has borne that out with a victory in the Listed Syringa Handicap her only subsequent victory in a string of unplaced runs on the Highveld.
She has recently moved back to De Kock’s Summerveld yard and her form has improved markedly.
Her fourth career win came in a modest handicap on the Greyville poly but last time out she was a close-up second to Celtic Captain in a useful field of males in the UmThombothi Handicap on the Greyville turf over 2 000m.
Persian Rug looks ideally suited to today’s event although a slow pace could prove detrimental to her chances.
That said, Dress For Success comes into the race with only 49.5kg to shoulder and apprentice Ashton Arries could make use of his weight advantage on Paul Lafferty’s runner and set the pace.
The filly took a steep rise in class over a trip short of her optimum when taking on males over the Scottsville mile at her last start, coming off two wins on the bounce.
She meets some useful fillies here but the extra two furlongs and a light weight puts her in with a strong chance.
Persian Rug looks to have the wood on both Little Chapel and Killer Woman given their last meeting but they won’t be far behind while Playboy Buddy is also back over a more suitable trip and will also be dangerous.
Top weight Princess Varunya gets 1.5kg relief courtesy of apprentice Eric Ngwane but she has not quite fulfilled her early promise and has been off the boil at recent outings.
In all, a false pace is a distinct possibility making a competitive handicap even more tricky but Delpech is a master of his trade and Persian Rug gets the nod ahead of Dress For Success.
Duncan Howells can round off the meeting with a double with Wild Wicket in the sixth and Roy’s Hollyhock in the last.
Wild Wicket is a lightly raced three-year-old that has shown some potential. He ran an excellent third on the Greyville poly first up out of the maidens behind What A Poet and that form was franked last Friday when Breakfast Club, four lengths back to Wild Wicket in that race, followed up with a win. The switch to turf should also be in Wild Wicket’s favour.
Howells has a second string to his bow in bottom weight Mambo. The gelding is much improved since being fitted with a tongue-tie and was touched off a piece-of-paper over the course and distance last time out. He is in receipt of 8kg from his stable companion and must come into the picture.
Roy’s Hollyhock was a beaten odds-on chance at her last start after two close-up seconds. However, after the race she was found to have ‘tweaked’ a back muscle so it is best to draw a line through that run.
The stable is in good form and Roy’s Hollyhock is likely to bloom this afternoon. Her biggest threat could come in the form of Space Needle.
Andre Nel’s filly has shown up nicely in two sprints and should much prefer this trip. The stable is in red-hot form in Cape Town and that could feed through to their Summerveld satellite yard under Byron Forster.