Summer Cup betting shake-up
SCRATCHED: WELL-BACKED IT’S MY TURN TAKEN OUT AFTER ‘NOT EATING UP’
Cascapedia is the favourite at 9-2, with stablemate Takingthepeace at 5-1.
Betting for the G-Bets Gauteng Summer Cup got a shake-up yesterday morning when well-fancied It’s My Turn was withdrawn from the big race at Turffontein on Saturday.
It’s My Turn was fourth favourite on the bookmakers’ boards – at 15-2 – when news broke that South Africa’s Champion Stayer of last season was “not eating up” from his manger in Dean Kannemeyer’s training stables. The scratching saw odds on most horses in the top half of the betting shorten by a half to two points.
The favourite, Cascapedia, dropped to 9-2 from an earlier call of 5-1, with her stablemate from the Mike de Kock yard, Takingthepeace, tightening to 5-1 from 6-1.
Cascapedia, a sparingly raced five-year-old mare bred in Ireland, is a worthy favourite with six wins from nine starts. A No 4 draw, the services of top jockey Gavin Lerena, a third outing after a rest and a comfortable 54.5kg to carry are all factors justifying her elevated position in the wagering league.
Sean Tarry-trained Tilbury Fort, the runner who has been attracting most punter attention in the run-up to the R2-million Grade 1 showpiece, has been trimmed half a point to 11-2 third favouritism.
Much improved since gelding earlier this year, Tilbury Fort has a trifling 52kg to carry, much of it in the form of champion jockey Lyle Hewitson, and looks appealing at that price.
Another De Kock runner, Noble Secret, on the drift over the past week, steadied at 15-2, while a fourth candidate from the stable, Like A Panther, came in to 14-1 from 16-1.
Two other horses who have shortened in price – due to the scratching as well as flows of shrewd money – are trainer Geoff Woodruff’s SA Oaks champion Secret Potion, who is currently on offer at 9-1, and Paul Peter’s consistent five-year-old mare Sabina’s Dynasty, who is at 12s.
There’s been little significant movement among the longershots in the 18-horse field, a notable exception being a plunge from 66-1 to 35-1 for Peter’s second string, Fort Ember, who will be ridden by talented Peruvian jockey Carlos Herrera Gomez.
Rank outsiders Kilrain – De Kock’s fifth charge in the contest, who he concedes looks outclassed – and Tandava, trained by exZimbabwean Gokhan Terzi, are stranded in the parched desert terrain of 90-1.
Betting for the Grade 1 G-Bets Gauteng Summer Cup to be run over 2000m at Turffontein on Saturday 1 December: 9-2 Cascapedia 5-1 Takingthepeace 11-2 Tilbury Fort