Brett and James Crawford Celebrate a Gr 1 (and a Gr 2) victory on their first day as an official training partnership. (Picture: Wayne Marks)
Brett Crawford has been a top, multiple Gr 1-winning trainer for a long time, but his racing operation has gone to a new level since his son James began managing their Randjesfontein-based satelllite yard and this included winning two Hollywoodbets Durban Julys.
It was thus fitting that on the very first day that their training partnership becoming official i.e. they now operate under the name Brett and James Crawford, they landed a Gr 1 and a Gr 2, with Fatal Flaw winning the Gr 1 WSB Cape Fillies Guineas and Oriental Charm winning the Gr 2 WSB Green Point Stakes.
This is likely a South African first.
Brett was full of praise for James after Fatal Flaw’s Cape Fillies Guineas win.
He said, “She was exceptionally well prepared by James (out of Randjesfontein) and traveled down exceptionally well last Monday. It is now a partnership and a first Group 1 winner for the partnership and a first Group 1 for James in his own name, so it was very special.”
He added, “Piere gave the filly a great ride from that wide draw.”
She was not stopping at the line and her dam Alinga (Rock Of Gibraltar) won a Listed race over 2000m, while her sire New Predator is by the Epsom Derby winner New Approach.
So the Gr 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes over 1800m seems the next logical step, but Brett said he would discuss it with the owners Warne Rippon and Arun Chadha of the ASSM Syndicate.
Meanwhile, the yard’s Hollywoodbets Durban July winner Oriental Charm looks capable of stepping up into a genuine Gr 1 weight for age contender after his dominating pillar to post win in the Gr 1 WSB Green Point Stakes, in which he beat last season’s Gr 1 L’Ormarins Kings Plate third-placed Royal Aussie by a length.
Brett said, “I was quite impressed with him on Saturday. He was obviously stepping up to level weights for the first time and I thought it was a very good win. He can only but improve from that run, so it looks like he’s making good progression as he gets older.”
Oriental Charm will now go the traditional route of a top horse, the Gr 1 wfa L’Ormarins King’s Plate and the Gr 1 wfa WSB Met.
He is in fact suddenly the favourite for the Met at 33/10.
That wouldn’t have seemed likely after his July win as he was 5kg better off than weight for age with See It Again in the July and only beat him by 1,80 lengths and that is not to mention that the latter was hampered too.
The only disappointment for the yard on Saturday was the run of Mon Petit Cherie (Rafeef), who was third favourite for the Cape Fillies Guineas.
Brett said, “She was a bit slow out and then she started pulling in the race and travelled very hard with Richard, which is unusual for her. She’s normally relaxed but on this occasion she never settled at all. She then just stayed on in the stretch, so it was a bit disappointing, but I think she’s better than that effort for sure.”
Mon Petit Cherie is by Rafeef out of a a Galileo mare so the Paddock Stakes would have seemed an option, but Brett was not sure of her next target.
