Buffalo Storm Cody’s Cape Flying Task Is Not Straight Forward

Buffalo Storm Cody has not looked back since winning the Gr 1 Mercury Sprint

Gr 1 Mercury Sprint winner Buffalo Storm Cody is unbeaten in three starts this season and is the highest rated horse in the country on 132, so will take a power of beating in the Gr 1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship on January 10 at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth.

The Tony Peter-trained Narrow Creek Stud-bred Buffalo Bill Cody four-year-old gelding does have a high draw of 13 though, so hopefully there is not the bias towards the low draws that there has been on occasion at the flagship racecourse.

The connections were never going to miss this opportunity, because the race has a Breeders Cup “win and you’re in” condition attached to it for the Breeders Cup Turf Sprint.

If there is a bias towards low draws then the second highest rated runner, Tenango, will not actually be favoured by barrier one because he is a hold up horse and with that bias the field will all track over to the inside and cause a lot of traffic for him.

The 124-rated KZN raider I Am Giant is drawn two and as one who likes to relax in midfield he will also be hoping they do not track over because last time out in the Gr 2 Splashout Cape Merchants over 1200m he was able to make his run down the inside rail. He holds the Merchants winner Outlaw King, being 3,5kg better off for a neck beating, and also holds Merchants third Otenikwa, although this is 1000m and might not be ideal for I Am Giant.

Asiye Phambili will love this distance but is another one who likes to relax in midfield, so hopefully the gaps open for her from draw five.

Truth has plenty of speed and could be a runner from a middle draw of eight.

Snow Pilot is an interesting runner as one with plenty of speed and he will have Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe-winning German jockey Rene Piechulek up.

Costellation is a fascinating runner, because although officially way out at the weights this three-year-old is relatively unexposed and is on the up.

Lucky Lad is a twice Gr 1-winning sprinter but his wins came in a two-year-old contest and in a handicap. However, he was unlucky in the Mercury Sprint two years ago when going down 0,70 lengths to Surjay. He is a horse who comes from off the pace so draw three might be tricky if they all track over, but he will enjoy the normal furious pace of this race.

Surjay is a an old soldier who will have come on from his below par run in the Merchants and this horse is capable of popping up as a Gr 1-winning sprinter who also has three other Gr 1 top three finishes, including finishing second in this race last season to runaway winner Gimme A Prince.

Kingdundee has been cleaning up in Gqeberha, so is a fascinating entry by Dean Smith.

Cafe Culture has just two lengths to make up on Buffalo Storm Cody from the Mercury Sprint, but his only attempt at 1000m was when slammed by 8,95 lengths in this race last season.

Direct Hit was a sensational Gr 1-winning juvenile and her only defeat in six career starts to date was last time out when beaten 2,60 lengths over this course and distance by  Asiye Phambili in the Gr 3 WSB Southern Cross Stakes over this course and distance. She was only half-a-kilogram worse off than weight for age in that race, so is up against it with Asiye Phambili, but that was also her second run after a layoff and she could bounce back.

Quuntum Theory disappointed in the Merchants when well beaten and has a tough task at the weights.

The field for the Gr 1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship: