Beach Bomb, seen here winning the Cartier Paddock Stakes, will be out to score a third Gr 1 in the Cape Summer in the Splashout Cape Derby next Saturday (24 February) (Picture: Wayne Marks)
Candice Bass-Robinson’s declaring of Beach Bomb and Trip Of Fortune for the Gr 1 SplashOut Cape Derby and Gr 2 Khaya Stables Diadem Stakes respectively depended on a racecourse gallop on Wednesday (three days ago) and Beach Bomb passed the test but Trip Of Fortune failed.
Beach Bomb still stands her ground, while Trip Of Fortune has been scratched.
Bass-Robinson said about Beach Bomb on Tuesday, “She is doing okay but had a bit of a virus after that last run (unplaced in the Gr 1 City Of Cape Town Majorca Stakes beaten ten lengths by Princess Calla, whom she had beaten in the Gr 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes) which was why she ran so flat. She’s had a week off and I’m taking her to gallop tomorrow. I’ll make my decision after the gallop.”
It was not a surprising decision for the Drakenstein Stud homebred to have been entered in the Derby because the Cape’s three-year-old male crop appears to be a touch below par this season.
This judgement is made chiefly on the no show of Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas winner and third-placed horses, Snow Pilot and Hluhluwe, in the L’Ormarins King’s Plate where they were beaten 5,90 lengths and 6,20 lengths respectively. Furthermore, the Cape Guineas runner up, the filly Red Palace, could only manage fourth out of six in the slow run Gr 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes, beaten 2,85 lengths by Beach Bomb, and she subsequently ran a 5,25 length fifth in the Gr 1 City Of Cape Town Majorca Stakes where two three-year-old fillies, Rascova and Double Grand Slam, beat her.
The inaugural running of the Cape Derby 99 years ago in 1925 was won by the filly Desert Born.
However, since 1950 only three fillies have won the great race, Green Lass in 1951, the Terrance Millard-trained Taima Bluff in 1980 and the Mike de Kock-trained Dog Wood in 1999.
Other prominent horses standing their ground in the Cape Derby are the Dean Kannemeyer-trained Gimmethegreenlight colt Green With Envy and the Justin Snaith-trained Trippi colt Hluhluwe.
Green With Envy was ultra impressive when giving weight to the opposition and coming from last to win the Gr 3 Politician Stakes by a cosy 1,25 lengths on WSB Cape Town Met day.
On formlines he is actually held by Beach Bomb on a line through Red Palace. However, that is on 1600m form and Green With Envy, who is out of a Galileo mare who won her only start in Ireland over a mile-and-three-and-a-half furlongs, has always been crying out for middle distances.
Hluhluwe won the Gr 2 Cape Punters Cup over 1600m and finished third in the Cape Guineas, but he has also looked to be wanting further. He is well regarded and classy and also has a lot of scope for improvement. He will be ridden by Daniel Muscutt, who won the WSB Cape Town Met for the same combination of trainer Justin Snaith and owner Nick Jonsson last month, thus becoming the first overseas-based jockey to ever win Cape Town’s most famous race.
Muscutt will also ride former Equus Champion Sprint Rio Querari for Snaith in the Diadem.
Snaith has two other runners declared in the Cape Derby, Gold Rush-winning gelding Rapidash, who will be ridden by Grant van Niekerk, and Gr 3 Politician Stakes third-placed colt Harajuku, who will be ridden by JP van der Merwe.
Both of those horses are by Danon Platina.
Rapidash is also owned by Jonsson in partnership with Douglas Ross and Harajuku is owned by Greg Bortz and Gina Goldsmith
Bass Robinson exciting three-year-old speedster Future Variety stilll stands his ground in the Diadem.
She said, “I think he probably will be a little bit out of his depth at this stage, but I think he is a horse who will be a nice sprinter in time.”
Mr Cobbs, who comes off a fifth place finish in the Gr 1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship, a race he finished second in two years ago, is also still standing his ground. However, Candice said he was better over 1000m and 1200m was always a touch too far for him.
Among the other horses still in the Diadem are the defending champion, the Adam Marcus-trained Bereave, who comes off a good third in the Gr 1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship.
The Cape Flying runner up Thunderstruck is also still in.
There are four other stakes races at the meeting, so the SplashOut Cape Town Seafood and Jazz Festival on February 24 will surely be a great day out.
