Dean Kannemeyer after In Writing had won him a second Gold Cup in 2012 (Picture: Gold Circle) HIs last Gold Cup win was in 2018 with It’s My Turn and his first was with Colonial Girl in 2000.
Dean Kannemeyer has two runners in the Gr 3 World Pool Gold Cup and will be attempting to win the country’s premier staying event for the fourth time.
He also spoke about his crack colt Green With Envy, who has been given a deserved rest after his Hollwoodbets Durban July run which didn’t pan out well and he only managed a disappointing 2,60 length seventh.
Dean said about the Master Of My Fate gelding Master Fuego, who ran third in the Gr 3 Splashout 2200 last time in his first run beyond 2000m, “I told Fred Crabbia I’ve got a gut feeling that he’ll go that trip, 2,200 metres. He had a light weight, but he ran all the way to the line. So I was happy with the performance and I said we’ll take our chances in the Gold Cup. If he’s going to stay the 3200m the race will tell us. But I liked the way he stayed on in the Splashout 2200.”
His other runner, the Vercingetorix gelding Ponte Pietra, also had his first run beyond 2000m in the Splashout 2200, but only managed a 3,30 length sixth.
Dean said, “He is out of a Galileo mare and has lot of stamina in the female line and he’s by Vercingetorix who went up to 2,000 metres. He hasn’t been an easy horse to ride. That’s why Sean’s going to ride him. He sometimes can take the bit, you try and bring him back and sometimes he can cock his jaw and he doesn’t want to relax. But last time Sean had him beautifully settled. He did moan a little incidentally – they let guys in from the outside and that, of course, just affected his rhythm. I’m not going to make any excuses, but he’s the type of horse that if he switches off completely, he has got ability. The race will tell if he stays, but he’s got all the credentials from a stamina point of view to get the trip.”
Dean runs the Fire Away gelding French Flame in the Gr 1 World Pool Moment Of The Day Champion Stakes over 1600m. He won fifth time out over 1400m and last time in his first start out of the maidens he ran a half-a-length second to Spirit Of Levana over 1600m at Hollywoodbets Scottsville giving the latter 3kg, if apprentice claims are ignored, or he was otherwise giving her 7kg. That was a decent effort considering Spirit Of Levana is lining up in the Gr 1 Douglas Whyte Thekwini Stakes.
Dean said, “He cost himself last time at Scottsville when he ran second. He actually came to pick off the winner and suddenly he just ducked for no rhyme or reason, ducked badly, and he got beat. He’s going into a Gr 1 for two-year-olds and I did say to my partner, “Do you mind, should I run him or not?”, because you know with these two-year-olds, if we win it, that’s great, but if we run fifth or fourth and two or three of those horses are rated high, he could be in a lot of trouble. He could be slammed right out of business. I’ve seen that happen so many times with two-year-olds. But we’re going to take our chances. It’s all good with him and it’s another issue, but that’s why I’ve got to be very cautious with these two-year-olds. I’ve stuck my neck out.”
He said about crack colt Green With Envy’s July run, “No excuses. He’s had a great campaign, he won the Politician stakes, he won the Derby, he came over here to KZN and won the Guineas and the Daily News and ran a great race in July. He was finishing his race in the July and got beat two and three-quarter lengths and we’ve decided to give him a break now. In my opinion, I don’t think there’s a three-year-old in the country who’s got that record, what he did building up to the July. But I’m going to give him a break now and take him back to Cape Town and start his summer campaign and build him up for the Met. He deserves a good break.”
Asked whether the July pace was too slow, he replied, “I’m not going to make any excuses. You either decide you want to run or you don’t want to run in the July, but I’ve never known a three-year-old to carry that type of weight in the July. But that’s history and we just move on.”
