The next Equus Awards press release with an updated points table for Horse Of The Year and other Awards is due out on Friday but there is unlikely to be any change in the race for Horse Of The Year.
There might be a change in the Three-year-old Champion Male with Double Superlative well beaten in the Grade 1 Jonsson Workwear Cape Derby by Pomp And Power and Safe Passage and Red Saxon winning the respective first two legs of the WSB SA Triple Crown.
In the three-year-old filly category Rain In Holland looks to be on her way to Wilgerbosdrift SA Triple Tiara glory but it is unlikely her performances have matched WSB Cape Fillies Guineas winner Chansonsette, who was only touched off by the top class Captain’s Ransom in two subsequent Grade 1 events.
Below is the last press release about the awards and the last points table.
Equus Awards Press Release
On behalf of the Equus Awards Committee
3 February 2022
Kommetdieding and Jet Dark Stake Early Claim for Equus Horse of the Year
With half of the 2021/22 racing season completed, Cape Met winner Kommetdieding and L’Ormarins Queens Plate winner Jet Dark jointly lead the Horse of the Year points log with 72 points. Each has accumulated their points with a win and a second in a Super Grade 1 race.
The fillies Captain’s Ransom and Chansonette have also accumulated 72 points, although those points were earned over more point-accumulating races than the two colts, with the former unbeaten this season in three fillies Graded races, and the latter winning a fillies age-group Grade 1 and finishing second in three fillies only Graded races.
Other contenders are Bohica (40) after his Cape Flying Championship win, Seeking The Stars (40) with 2 Graded wins, and Grade 1 Cape Guineas winner Double Superlative (38).
Champion Three-Year-Old Colt
Double Superlative leads the three-year-old Equus award category for colts with 38 points, while another Snaith-trained runner, Pomp And Power, is on 32 points. Cosmic Highway (19), Safe Passage (16) and Aragosta (12) are all early contenders.
While the Cape Summer season comes to an end with the Cape Derby meeting at the end of February, the Highveld Autumn season starts this coming weekend with the joint first legs of the Triple Crown and Triple Tiara. The Cape Derby offers 32 points to the winner while the
Highveld Triple Crown races offer a combined 80 points for the winners of the three legs.
The Highveld trained Mike de Kock pair, Safe Passage and Aragosta, will have the three Triple Crown races to close the gap on Double Superlative.
Champion Three-Year-Old Filly
Chansonette has opened a big lead on her opposition in the three-year-old filly category with 72 points. She won the Grade 1 Cape Fillies Guineas and recorded three seconds in other points-accumulating Graded races, twice being touched off by Captain’s Ransom.
Desert Miracle, second in the Cape Fillies Guineas, is on 24 points but has the three races of the Highveld Triple Tiara series to close the gap on Chansonette, who is unlikely to travel to the Highveld. A total of 64 points is up for grabs for the winners of the three legs of the Triple Tiara.
Big Burn (22), Amanzimtoti (16) and Sprinkles (10) follow in the points log.
Champion Older Male and Female
Kommetdieding and Jet Dark share top spot on 72 points in the Champion Older Male category, with Bohica (40), Seeking The Stars (40) and Flying Carpet (32) making up the log.
Captain’s Ransom on 72 points leads the Champion Older Female category with Sparkling Water (30), Bold Fortune (24), Kitty Kat Chat (16) and Marina (16) behind her.
Distance Categories
Points are accumulated in distance categories for all Graded non-age-group races. To broaden the points opportunities for stayers, all-age Listed races over 2400m and further are included in the Staying
category. Points accumulated in age-restricted races are therefore not included in these categories.
After the sole Grade 1 sprint event so far this season, Bohica leads the Champion Sprinter log after Saturday’s narrow win in the Grade 1 Cape Flying Championship with 40 points. Mr Cobbs (20), Kitty Kat Chat (16), Vikram (16) and African Rain (10) follow. The Grade 1 Computaform Sprint at the end of April is the next big opportunity for horses in this category with 40 points on offer to the winner.
Jet Dark on 48 points leads the Champion Miler log followed by Captain’s Ransom (40), Seeking The Stars (40), Bingwa (26) and Kommetdieding (24). The next big race in this category is the Grade 1 Horse Chestnut Stakes offering 48 points to the winner.
Kommetdieding on 48 points leads the Champion Middle Distance log followed by Captain’s Ransom (32), Flying Carpet (32), Jet Dark (24) and Firealley (21). The 2000m Grade 1 Champions Challenge, offering 48 points to the winner, is the next big opportunity in this category at the end of April.
Sparkling Water, on 20 points, leads the Champion Stayer log after her last gasp win in the Grade 2 Chairman’s Cup on Cape Met day. She is followed by Holy Warrior (10), Chrome Yellow (8), Doublemint (8) and Silver Host (6). Having won the only open Grade 2 stayers race in South Africa (there are no point-accumulating Grade 1 staying races), Sparkling Water is well placed to maintain her lead in this category through the Highveld Autumn season and beyond.
Racing action moves from the Cape to the Highveld over the next three months and horses competing in the Highveld Autumn features are likely to make healthy inroads into those log leaders emerging from the Cape Summer season.
Equus Awards 2022 – Points Tables to 31 January 2022
Horse of the Year | Age | Sex | Pts |
KOMMETDIEDING (SAF) | 4 | C | 72 |
JET DARK (SAF) | 4 | C | 72 |
CAPTAIN’S RANSOM (SAF) | 4 | F | 72 |
CHANSONETTE (SAF) | 3 | F | 72 |
BOHICA (SAF) | 5 | G | 40 |
SEEKING THE STARS (SAF) | 4 | C | 40 |
DOUBLE SUPERLATIVE (SAF) | 3 | C | 38 |
Champion Three-Year-Old Male | Age | Sex | Pts |
DOUBLE SUPERLATIVE (SAF) | 3 | C | 38 |
POMP AND POWER (SAF) | 3 | G | 32 |
COSMIC HIGHWAY (SAF) | 3 | C | 19 |
SAFE PASSAGE (SAF) | 3 | G | 16 |
ARAGOSTA (SAF) | 3 | G | 12 |
Champion Three-Year-Old Female | Age | Sex | Pts |
CHANSONETTE (SAF) | 3 | F | 72 |
DESERT MIRACLE (SAF) | 3 | F | 24 |
BIG BURN (SAF) | 3 | F | 22 |
AMANZIMTOTI (SAF) | 3 | F | 16 |
SPRINKLES (SAF) | 3 | F | 10 |
Champion Older Male | Age | Sex | Pts |
KOMMETDIEDING (SAF) | 4 | C | 72 |
JET DARK (SAF) | 4 | C | 72 |
BOHICA (SAF) | 5 | G | 40 |
SEEKING THE STARS (SAF) | 4 | C | 40 |
FLYING CARPET (SAF) | 4 | C | 32 |
Champion Older Female | Age | Sex | Pts |
CAPTAIN’S RANSOM (SAF) | 4 | F | 72 |
SPARKLING WATER (SAF) | 4 | F | 30 |
BOLD FORTUNE (SAF) | 4 | F | 24 |
KITTY CAT CHAT (SAF) | 4 | F | 16 |
MARINA (SAF) | 4 | F | 16 |
Champion Sprinter | Age | Sex | Pts |
BOHICA (SAF) | 5 | G | 40 |
MR COBBS (SAF) | 5 | G | 20 |
KITTY CAT CHAT (SAF) | 4 | F | 16 |
VIKRAM (SAF) | 6 | G | 16 |
AFRICAN RAIN (SAF) | 3 | G | 10 |
Champion Miler | Age | Sex | Pts |
JET DARK (SAF) | 4 | C | 48 |
CAPTAIN’S RANSOM (SAF) | 4 | F | 40 |
SEEKING THE STARS (SAF) | 4 | C | 40 |
BINGWA (SAF) | 4 | G | 26 |
KOMMETDIEDING (SAF) | 4 | C | 24 |
Champion Middle Distance | Age | Sex | Pts |
KOMMETDIEDING (SAF) | 4 | C | 48 |
CAPTAIN’S RANSOM (SAF) | 4 | F | 32 |
FLYING CARPET (SAF) | 4 | C | 32 |
JET DARK (SAF) | 4 | C | 24 |
FIREALLEY (SAF) | 4 | G | 21 |
Champion Stayer | Age | Sex | Pts |
SPARKLING WATER (SAF) | 4 | F | 20 |
HOLY WARRIOR (SAF) | 5 | G | 10 |
CROME YELLOW (SAF) | 7 | G | 8 |
DOUBLEMINT (SAF) | 7 | G | 8 |
SILVER HOST (SAF) | 5 | G | 6 |
Picture: Kommetdieding beating Jet Dark and Linebacker in the WSB Met (Wayne Marks).