Jan Van Goyen’s easy win in the Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas on Saturday prompted questions whether the Candice and Tessa Dawson-trained Trust will go down for the L’Ormarins King’s Plate, because he defeated Jan Van Goyen in the Gr 2 Jackpot City Dingaans (Picture: Wayne Marks)
The Mike and Mathew de Kock-trained Jan van Goyen stamped the Highveld three-year-old form by making short work of the Cape three-year-olds in the Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas.
Callan Murray managed to find the rail from draw four and the Master Of My Fate colt settled in a position just forward of midfield as Good For You set the pace.
Good For you was soon a spent force in the straight and it was the handy horses making their runs down the inside, Star Major, Pay The Palace and Roland Garros, who emerged as contenders.
Gimme Rules and Happy Verse were unwinding strong runs from off the pace towards the outside and Randolph Hearst was running on strongly down the inside rail from a position just backward of midfield.
Meanwhile, the small horse with the superb action, Jan van Goyen, had been switched to the centre.
He was given a backhander by Murray and as he began stretching it became clear he was superior to this field.
He left the nearest challengers, Happy Verse and Gimme The Rules, chasing shadows and won by 2,75 lengths without being put under serious pressure by Murray.
Happy Verse finished second with Randolph Hearst 0,30 lengths further back in third, Gimmie Rules another 0,30 lengths back in fourth and Fox On The Run running on well to be a shorthead further back. Star Major was a shorthead further back in sixth.
To win so easily just two weeks after making his seasonal reappearance in the Betway Dingaans in faraway Johannesburg marks Jan Van Goyen as something special and he is duly 4/1 joint-favourite with Eight On Eighteen for the Gr 1 L’Ormarins King’s Plate.
It will be interesting to see whether Dingaans winner Trust is supplemented for the L’Ormarins King’s Plate after today’s results.
It was a fine day for the De Kock yard as they also won the Gr 2 Ridgemont Green Point Stakes with Dave The King. who was also ridden by Murray.
The Alec Laird-trained Sukhumvit made it a great day for raiding yards as Sukhmvit (Silvano) took the Gr 3 1Voucher Victress Stakes over 1800m under Philasande Mxoli.
The Gr 2 Splashout Cape Merchants saw the Dean Kannemeyer-trained Outlaw King getting up by a neck under Craig Zackey and thus preventing a raiding yard four-timer as the Stuart Ferrie-trained I Am Giant was in second place.
The Gr 3 Ownpay Peninsula Handicap saw Capetonian yards dominate with the Justin Snaith-trained Regulation (Legislate), who was regarded as the meeting banker by many, getting up to beat Major Master by a neck.
