Charles Dickens is one from one at Hollywoodbets Greyville, having won the Gr 2 WSB Guineas last time out (Candiese Lenferna Photography). 

Candice Bass-Robinson’s Gr 1-winning pair Charles Dickens and Trip Of Fortune galloped around the turn at Summerveld last week and “put up some really nice work.”

She added, “So everything is on track for the Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge (June 10 at Hollywoodbets Greyville). Charles Dickens has come on nicely for that last run and I am very happy with him.”

She is also very happy with Trip Of Fortune and concluded, “I’m very happy with all of my horses at Summerveld.”

Charles Dickens will likely be a short-priced favourite for the Gold Challenge where he will bid to exact revenge on his L’Ormarins King’s Plate conqueror, Al Muthana.

The superstar Trippi colt, who is nicknamed either Charles or “Goosebumps”, proved his superiority over the mile trip last time out in the Gr 2 WSB Guineas when still needing the run.

Candice said the “Goosebumps” nickname had come about early in his career when a jockey got off and said he had given him “goosebumps.”

Charles Dickens is not a Hollywoodbets Durban July entry but Candice did not totally dismiss the idea of supplementing him when asked recently whether there was any chance of it happening.

He was deemed to have not stayed when beaten by See It Again in the Gr 1 Splashout Cape Derby, but the latter’s subsequent form points to that still being a fine effort and he would only have to give See It Again 1kg as things stand (see first article in the newsletter).