Trippi gelding Hluhluwe faces an acid test at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday (Picture: Wayne Marks)
The justin Snaith-trained Trippi gelding Hluhluwe could be the dark horse in Saturday’s Gr 1 Daily News 2000.
He has always been well regarded and proved his class when winning the Gr 2 Cape Punters Cup, beating Snow Pilot and Green With Envy by 0,40 lengths and 0,45 lengths respectively.
However, if he was to become the horse some were predicting he would become then his subsequent three Hollywoodbets Kenilworth runs were disappointing.
Starting at 33/10 for the Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas, he finished a two length third, although he did beat Green With Envy again, albeit by a shorthead.
He was then never a factor in the Gr 1 L’Ormarins King’s Plate, beaten 6,20 lengths into tenth with his stable companion and Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas winner Snow Pilot finishing in front of him again.
However, even looking back at Hluhluwe’s Punter’s Cup win over 1600m, he did not turn it on in an electrifying manner, but rather just stayed on resolutely, and he repeated that type of finish in the Guineas and King’s Plate.
So it was resasonable to believe he needed further than a mile.
His pedigree also suggested he needed further. His dam Lebombo Breeze’s only win was over 1800m and she is by stamina influence Giant’s Causeway. Furthermore, Hluhluwe’s half-brother Breeze Over (Twice Over) is a useful stayer and finished a narrow second in the Listed Tab Gold Bowl over 3200m. Furthermore, Lebombo Breeze is a half-sister to Fresnaye, classy winner of the Listed Winter Oaks over 2200m and also the Gr 3 Victress Stakes over 1800m and the Listed Stormsvlei Mile.
However, when Hluhluwe was stepped up to the trip many believed he needed, the 2000m of the Gr 1 Splashout Cape Derby, he disappointed again, beaten into fifth place, 5,25 lengths behind the progressive Green With Envy.
The Cape three-year-old crop were categorized as below par after the King’s Plate.
Green With Envy has gone on to confound that theory, but he has left his Cape contemporaries, including Hluhluwe, behind.
However, the hope for Hluhluwe’s connections and fans now is that he needed the gelding he had subsequent to the Cape Derby.
He had his first run as a gelding in the WSB Guineas, and it wasn’t a bad effort as he stayed on steadily to finish fourth, two lengths behind the winner Green With Envy. However, he did not threaten to set the track alight and was once again beaten by Snow Pilot.
He will now go over the trip he is bred for … and this time as a gelding.
Will this ignite the good looking son of Trippi?
The keen hold he took early on in the WSB Guineas might have been due to inexperience around a left-handed bend and he was running fresh.
He will need to settle better this time, otherwise it might be more of the same.
However, hope springs eternal with racehorses who threaten to be top class and seemingly just need some sort of spark to release that latent potential.
This is reflected in the words of Jonathan Snaith, who said today about Hluhluwe, “He seems to have improved after gelding and this will be his second start after a break. His last start was pretty decent and he’s bound to improve a lot on that run. He’s a horse that is better than his form would suggest. Hluhluwe is well held by Green with Envy on form but Justin does feel this son of Trippi will get closer than in previous attempts.”
The yard also run The Grey King in the Daily News.
He is well held by Green With Envy, who not only beat him by 1,25 lengths in the Gr 3 Schweppes Politician Stakes over 1800m but is now 5,5kg better off too.
On the upside, The Grey King was beaten just 1,40 lengths last time out over 1900m at Hollywoodbets Greyville and the Gareth van Zyl-trained winner Flag Man has been supplemented into the Daily News 2000. This is significant because The Grey King gave Flag Man 5kg and the latter’s supplementary entry suggests he is highly regarded.
Jonathan said about The Grey King, “He has it all to do at the weights but is arguably the most successful syndicated horse so far in South Africa. If he stays the trip and settles in the race, he could sneak into minor money in this Gr1 event. He seems to have a near impossible task at the weights despite being at his very best back home. His pedigree suggests he’ll have absolutely no issue seeing out the ten furlong trip. Justin is hoping he can produce his best effort yet.”
The yard also run the enigmatic One Way Traffic in the Listed Lonsdale Stirrup Cup over 2400m.
The six-year-old Dynasty gelding has been in much better form this season than he was last and this was emphasised by his narrow second in the WSB Highland Night Cup over 2400m at Hollywoodbets Scottsville in his Champions Season pipe opener.
Jonathan said, “One Way Traffic is pretty much back to his best and he is flying back home. He should be the one to beat. If he wins this race, he’ll head for the Gold Circle Derby next. This will be One Way Traffic’s third attempt at trying to win the Lonsdale Stirrup Cup.”
