I Am Giant Can Land Deserved Win In The Diadem

I Am Giant is pictured winning the Gr 3 Post Merchants last July (Candiese Lenferna Photography)

I Am Giant has enjoyed being in Cape Town at the Milnerton Training Centre, unlike his Summerveld-based stablemate Gladatorian, and the Stuart Ferrie-trained six-year-old Querari gelding could well be the one to beat in the Gr 2 Khaya Stables Diadem Stakes over 1200m on February 28.

Last year’s Diadem was won by the Equus Champion Sprinter Gimme A Prince and in second and third places were Cafe Culture and Questioning, beaten 0,75 lengths and 1,75 lengths respectively.

Cafe Culture actually gave Questioning 1kg in that race too and faces him at level weights this year.

I Am Giant has faced Cafe Culture at level weights in both the Gr 2 SplashOut Cape  Merchants over 1200m and the Gr 1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship over 1000m this Summer and has beaten him by 7,30 lengths and 0,85 lengths respectively.

He faces him at level weights again.

I Am Giant beat Questioning by a shorthead when they last clashed and that was in the Gr 1 Mercury Sprint over 1200m at Hollywoodbets Greyville at the end of last season.

Before that over that same Greyville course and distance I Am Giant had received 4kg from Questioning when winning the Gr 3 Post Merchants and he beat him by 4,40 lengths.

So it all point to I Am Giant, despite Questioning officially being the best in at the weights.

I Am Giant is joint-second best in at the weights and is officially 1,5kg under sufferance with Questioning.

Cafe Culture did beat I Am Giant in the Mercury Sprint, but as already mentioned I Am Giant has come out on top in their last two meetings, both at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth.

Cafe Culture is the fifth best in at the weights in the Diadem, but is 2kg under sufferance with I Am Giant and 3,5kg under sufferance with Questioning.

The versatile Questioning actually gained his 127 merit rating over 1600m in the L’Ormarins King’s Plate and before that was rated 123, one point lower than I Am Giant.

The fourth best in at the weights is Outlaw King, who is rated 123 but has to give the rest of the field 1kg.

Outlaw King’s 2kg penalty is due to his win in the Gr 2 SplashOut Cape Merchants over 1200m.

However, in that race Outlaw King was receiving 3,5kg from I Am Giant and only beat him by a neck.

They met again in the Cape Flying and I am Giant beat Outlaw King at level weights by 0,30 lengths.

The joint second best-weighted runner in the Diadem is the 119-rated mare Asiye Phambili, who will receive a 2,5kg gender allowance.

I Am Giant beat Asiye Phambile by 0,7 lengths in the Cape Flying on these same weight terms.

Asiye Phambili is weighted to reverse form with Outlaw King from the Cape Flying.

I Am Giant should make a bold bid on the 28th.

Meanwhile, his stablemate Gladatorian is back at home at Summerveld.

Ferrie surmised that Gladatorian had not enjoyed the relatively heavy training tracks at Milnerton, whereas I Am Giant does not mind them.

He also pointed out I Am Giant had spent time in Cape Town before as an unraced juvenile when trained by Brett Crawford and although he had not raced in Cape Town before departing for the Crawfords’ Jo’Burg yard, everything might have likely been more familiar to him, despite Crawford training out of Futura Park rather than Milnerton.

The entries for the Gr 2 Khaya Stables Diadem are shown below: