Global View filly Qondanekukhanyeni gives the Hollywood Syndicate a quick double at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on Sunday, both trained by Garth Puller and ridden by Ahandiwe Mgudlwa. (Candiese Lenferna Photography)
Hollywood Syndicate have started this season with a bang and have already had 15 wins.
Their record return for one month was 18 in September 2022 and other good months have been 17 in November 2022 and 15 in January 2024.
There are unfortunately no more KZN meetings this month and the Hollywoodbets Durbanville meeting scheduled for Wednesday this week has been switched to Saturday, with the Saturday meeting scheduled for Hollywoodbets Kenilworth being switched to Durbanville next Tuesday.
So that leaves just five meetings for the remainder of the month and the Hollywood Syndicate have confirmed runners in just three of them.
They have six confirmed runners before month end:
The Gavin Smith-trained Flower Alley gelding Syx Hotfix had a tough task on his East Cape debut in a Pinnacle event and in race 5 on Tuesday on the Fairview poly he is out at the weights again in a Pinnacle event over 1900m, but not badly, and is in with a chance if rediscovering his best KZN form.
In race 3 in the Faiview Friday turf meeting the Gavin Smith-trained Erupt gelding Iguguletha won second time out in the East Cape after relocating from Cape Town and as merit ratings are often suppressed in the latter centre due to its strength he might be able to follow up in a Novice Plate over 1200m, despite officially being 2.5kg under sufferance with the best weighted male and 4kg under sufferance with the best weight female.
In race 6 in the Fairview turf Friday meeting , the Alan Greeff-trained Dynasty gelding Final Edition will have to bounce back from two below par runs, having previously been a hard knocker.
In race 8 over 1400m at the Fairview Friday meeting the Alan Greeff-trained five-year-old Pomodoro gelding Meetatthewindsor comes off a good win over 1600m on the poly and went close the last time he raced on the turf over 1600m. However, he is now four points higher than that last turf close up fnish and has a wide draw over a trip on the sharp side.
In the Hollywoodbets Durbanville meeting on Saturday, the Lunga Gila-trained Gold Standard filly Voorsmaakie will need to show more than she has done. She runs in a maiden plate and the 1250m trip will also likely be too sharp.
In race 9 in that meeting over 1000m the Brett Crawford-trained Canford Cliffs four-year-old King Of Spin has his third run after a layoff and gelding and might be interesting over this shorter trip, but he has a wide draw and needs to bounce back to form.
The Hollywood Syndicate’s only other possible chance in the month will come from the hard-knocking Clinton Binda-trained Black Egret (Rafeef), who is entered in the Spring Spree Stakes over 1200m at Turffontein Inside on Saturday, but he has landed a wide draw of 18 out of 22 entries so it remains to be seen whether he will accept.
The chances of getting three wins from those seven runners is a tough ask but nevertheless it is a good start to the season and bodes well for their chances of reaching or breaking their record of 124 wins in a season set in the 2022/2023 season.
