Make It Snappy (Wayne Marks).
Anthony Delpech, racing manager of the Hollywood Syndicate, is not sure yet of the route their Brett Crawford-trained dual Grade 1 winner Make It Snappy will be taking for the rest of the season as her automatic invitation to the Breeders Cup is under consideration.
Looking back on the WSB Met and asked why the big Dynasty filly did not take the lead early and set the pace, he said, “It was the plan to lead (although he had also said in the build up she did not need to lead and there would always be a Plan B ) but Keagan (De Melo) felt they were going a bit too quick early. But he then got caught when the pacemaker slowed it up. I don’t think it made any difference though. She had every chance in the straight. I just don’t think she quite stayed the trip at this stage of her career. Everything also came a bit quickly, she went from a maiden to the Met favourite in just over three months, so we must slow down a bit.”
The winner of the Grade 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes wins an invitation to the Breeders Cup and hence Make It Snappy’s program for the rest of the season is still up in the air.
Meanwhile, Hollywood’s Grade 1 Pongracz Cape Flying Championship third-placed Isivunguvungu (What A Winter) will return to trainer Peter Muscutt’s Summerveld yard and be prepared for the Grade 1 Computaform Sprint, which is to be run on April 29 at Turffontein Standside. Turffontein has a quick 1000m course which should suit Isivunguvungu down to the ground, being a horse with plenty of natural speed and a fine turn of foot.
Hithemhardsunshine will be sent up to Johannesburg for an autumn season campaign and will be trained there by Stuart Pettigrew . He disappointed in the Cape Flying, but was probably a bit too handy.
Kitchakal (Master Of My Fate) was a Hollywood horse who ran well on Met day, finishing a staying on 0,30 length third over 1200m in The World Pool Invitational, a Non-Black Type handicap for horses with a nett merit rating of 84 or below.
Delpech said Kitchakal was only entered in a 1200m race to get him to settle, as he had tended to over-race. He said if able to do a bit better than he had been doing he might be a WSB Guineas horse (May 6 at Hollywoodbets Greyville).
Delpech was happy with the run of Anfields Rocket in Saturday’s Grade 2 WSB Gauteng Guineas, in which he finished a 4,50 length fifth.
He said, “He came from a very long way back so had a virtually impossible task because in the going the horses were struggling to make up the ground on the day. It was a very good race.”
He said Anfields Rocket lacked early pace, so there had been little choice but to drop him out from draw 14.
However, he said despite running on well the jury was still out on whether he stayed a mile.
Delpech personally believes the Coup De Grace gelding is a better sprinter.
Hollywood are still in the lead in the owners championship.
However, Delpech said the ball was in the court of second-placed Drakenstein Stud, who had more Grade 1 firepower as owners of the like of Charles Dickens.
