Future Swings wins easing up under JP van der Merwe (Pauline Herman Photography)
Future Swing became the fifth Justin Snaith-trained winner in the last ten years of the East Cape’s main race, the Listed Jonsson Workwear Algoa Cup over 2000m.
He provided Drakenstein Stud’s stallion Futura with a 16th stakes winner after being brought from off the pace by JP van der Merwe.
That is some feat for the Dynasty sire because he has only had four crops to race.
Futura’s progeny tend to get better with age so not surprisingly his 2017 crop (now six-year-olds) have had seven stakes winners, his 2018 crop four and his 2019 crop five, while his current three-year-olds are still reaching maturity and do not have a stakes winner among them to date.
Future Swing is a Drakenstein homebred, although he is also owned by Ravi Naidoo and Pam Isdell.
He runs in the colours of Naidoo.
Naidoo now races under the name Kalinga (see next article).
Future Swing started at odds of 8/1, but would not have been a surprise winner to Ravi who has always had a high regard for this horse.
It is well documented that Drakenstein hold the record for the most individual stakes winners in a season which they improved last season to 20 having had 18 the season before.
They already have five stakes winners this season.
Future Swing jumped from draw four and was left alone by Van der Merwe in the early stages.
He found a position in midfield and was always travelling well.
Van der Merwe remained admirably patient in the first bit of the straight.
He then drove his mount into a challenging position from the 500m mark.
At the 300m he still looked to have a lot to do being about three lengths behind Gallic Tribe, who had moved into the lead, and with some traffic to negotiate.
Fortunately Gallic Tribe hung inward from the outside which left Future Swing with a dream clear run.
He still looked to have a lot to do with 200m to go but was able to maintain a superbly long stride length which saw him easily swallowing up Gallic Tribe.
Last year’s winner, the Glen Kotzen-trained Han Solo, came from near the back with a resolute finish and emerged as the main danger, but Future Swing showed no signs of wilting and ran out a comfortable 1,25 length winner from Han Solo.
Jacques Strydom was the last local trainer to win the Algoa Cup way back in 2009 with Surfin’ USA and Gallic Tribe looked at one stage to have a chance of ending the drought.
In the end he managed a gallant 1,75 length third.
The Glen Kotzen-trained Lord William was a four length fourth.
Local hero Grazinginthegrass, trained by Alan Greeff, was going for a seventh consecutive win. However, his tasks have generally been easier in conditions races and under handicapping conditions having to carry topweight proved to much for him, although he tried hard all the way up the straight to finish a meritorious fifth under a welter 61.5kg burden.
Snaith won the Algoa Cup last year with Legislate gelding Hoedspruit, with Horse Chestnut gelding Magnificent Seven in 2018 and with Silvano gelding Nebula in 2016 and 2017.
All the raider winners since 2009 have come from Cape Town with the exception of the 2015 winner, the Sean Tarry-trained Stonehenge.
JP van der Merwe revealed his instructions had been to get the horse to drop the bit as early and for as long as possible being a horse whose previous four wins had all been over a mile and who was trying 2000m for the first time. He could not have fulfilled the instructions any better.
