Grand Empire after winning the Gr 1 HKJC World Pool SA Classic (JC Photos)
Sean Tarry could be called the Bruce Fordyce of horseracing because he makes an annual charge in the second half of the season and on at least a couple of occasions has put himself in a position to overtake Justin Snaith, who usually has a big lead at the halfway mark.
The five-times national champion trainer looks unlikely to challenge Snaith this season because the latter has plenty of firepower, but he did have a fine Classic Day with two Gr 1 wins and two Listed exactas, which saw the gap between Snaith and the rest closed to about R8 million.
Tarry said about the HKJC World Pool SA Classic winner Grand Empire’s targets, “There are various options, I haven’t got a set program. It depends on whether you have aspirations of going the for the July or the Daily News or both, or whether you want to go for the Premier’s Challenge. There are a lot of options but I haven’t firmed up a path.”
He didn’t mention the SA Derby as an option.
Grand Empire’s merit rating at present is 120.
However, there is apparently an appeal against his and other ratings emanating from the handicapping updates made after the SA Classic.
The outcome of that could help decide the route to take.
Tin Pan Alley, winner of the Gr 1 Wilgerbosdrift HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes over 1600m, has more obvious targets.
Tarry said, “It’s pretty straight forward, the WSB Guineas and the Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge.”
He added, “The Hawaii is an option but you have to be mindful of him carrying a Gr 1 penalty there, it would still make him well weighted according to his rating, but we don’t always try and test the rating, we try and keep a weight for age horse at level weights while he’s got that advantage.”
Tin Pan Alley hasn’t been tried over further than a mile yet, but the way he won the Horse Chestnut Stakes suggests the relatively easy 1800m of Hollywoodbets Greyville could make the Gr 1 wfa Champions Cup an option for him at the end of the sesson.
Tarry scored exactas in both the Listed Ruffian Stakes over 1000m with Secretary Bird and Griselda and with Care Forgot and Warning Sound in the Listed Wilgerbosdrift Acacia Stakes over 1600m.
The two-year-old Rafeef filly Secretary Bird qualifies for the R3 million Race Coast Sales Slipper to be run over 1200m on April 11 at Hollywoodbets Greyville together with stablemates Status Symbol and Turn It Up.
Status Symbol is a colt by Gimmethegreenlight out of the former Tarry-trained Tiger Ridge mare Trophy Wife, who had the Gr 2 Gerald Rosenberg Stakes over 1800m among her seven wins.
Status Symbol won second time out over 800m having finished fourth to the lightning fast Heath House on debut.
Turn It Up is a Querari colt who is a half-brother to Tarry’s Gr 1 Gold Medallion winner Proceed.
Turn It Up fnished a running on second to Heath House on debut before winning by 5,30 lengths second time out over 1000m.
Tarry is also looking to be building up a strong string for his annual assault on the Hollywoodbets Scottsville Festival Of Speed meeting and Griselda will likely be in that team.
The Festival Of Speed meeting used to have a Jackpot of Gr 1 races, but was down to three Gr 1s last year when the Golden Horse Sprint was downgraded and this year it will only have two Gr 1s, because the Allan Robertson has now been downgraded to a Gr 2 also.
