Thrilling finishes to Grand Series
GOOD BETS: AS ALL RACES ARE PLATE EVENTS, THERE ARE STAND-OUT BETS
Please note new times of races owing to the meeting being moved.
The first leg of this season’s Workriders’ Challenge kicks off at the Vaal tomorrow and is a great opportunity for these riders to showcase their talent.
This race meeting was scheduled to be run at Turffontein last Thursday but, owing to weather and track issues, meetings had to be rearranged and this was one of those affected. As a result, there are some changes to the times and the distances of the races. All the 1450m races now become 1400m contests.
In order to accommodate the twilight meeting at Durbanville tomorrow, Race 1 will now go off at 12.10pm and NOT at 1.25pm as indicated in ComputaForm. The book was printed before the move was made. Please check pages 4 and 5 of this Racing Express in order to get the new race times.
The Workriders’ Challenge is raced over three meetings, with R5,000 going to the winning rider at each meeting. A prize of R20,000 will go to the rider who tops the table after all three meetings.
The meeting comprises eight Maiden Plates but there are often some very good bets at these meetings. One of those looks to be Durban Bourbon in Race 6, a Maiden Plate over 1600m.
There are some items that will count against this four-year-old daughter of Trippi but the Mike de Kock-trained runner does have the best form in the race.
Durban Bourbon only started racing as a late three-year-old and, after two runs in March, has not raced since. However, in her last race she ran a one-length second behind Words over 1600m at the Vaal.
She ran poorly on debut but what is interesting about that unplaced run behind Make Me Happy is that four winners have come from the form line. Two winners have come out of the second outing.
She might very well be in need of the run and will have to overcome No 11 draw, but she has one of the top riders aboard in Chamu Mabaya and looks to be a banker in all bets.
The main danger could be Sean Tarry-trained Fortuna Doro, but her form looks weaker than that of Durban Bourbon.
Another good bet comes in Race 7, in which trainer Chesney van Zyl saddles Irish Wonder Girl in a Maiden Plate over 1800m.
This will be only her fourth start but in her last race she ran on strongly to finish second behind A Little Luck in a race over 1600m on this course. She was drawn No 12, which is hard to overcome on this course. This time she jumps from pole position and looks very hard to beat.