Mucho Dinero wins cosily on Saturday under Aldo Domeyer. (Picture: Wayne Marks).
The Justin Snaith-trained Triple Time was one of the most talked about horses before Saturday’s WSB Met meeting but it brought to mind the old adage by the legendary punter, owner and publisher Phil Bull, whose motto was, “At the racecourse, keep your eyes open and your ears closed.”
The form pointed to Triple Time’s stablemate Much Dinero being the right one for the Gr 3 New Turf Carriers Western Cape Stayers over 2800m, because he had finished third over 2500m in his previous start carrying 60kg and giving lumps of weight away, and he faced a lot of the same horses on Saturday on much better weight terms.
Triple Time finished a shorthead second in last year’s Western Cape Stayers, but didn’t appear to have had as good a preparation as Mucho Dinero for a 2800m event this time around as he was coming in off an 1800m race, the Gr 2 Anthonij Rupert Wyne Premier Trophy, where he was unlucky to be unplaced.
Triple Time, nevertheless, might still have been the right one, but unfortunately the race just did not pan out well for him. He was caught one out and one back without cover throughout, while Mucho Dinero had cover on the rail behind the second and third pair throughout.
Mucho Dinero thus picked off Triple Time quite easily in the straight to win by a cosy 1,75 lengths from Love Is A Rose with Triple Time a further half-a-length back in third.
King Pelles had beaten Mucho Dinero by 3,25 lengths last time out over 2500m in the Glorious Goodwood Chairmans Cup, but he was now 7,5kg worse off and duly finished a 2,45 length fourth with Otto Lukyen next best.
Stalwart front-running Jo’Burg raider Poets Warrior was a disappointing sixth and Future Pearl was even more disappointing in seventh.
Mucho Dinero did not enjoy his KZN campaign last year, so it remains to be see whether he will head to Durban for races like the Gold Cup.
Cape Breeders wrote the following article about the stallion Twice Over’s success in the Western Cape Stayers.
Cape Breeders
Klawervlei Stud’s four time G1 winning stallion Twice Over made his presence felt at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on World Sports Betting Cape Town Met day.
Twice Over geldings Mucho Dinero and Triple Time finished first and third respectively in Saturday’s G3 New Turf Carriers Western Cape Stayers to provide their sire with a 1-3 finish in the R500 000 contest.
Both Much Dinero and Triple Time are trained by Justin Snaith and owned by Nick Jonsson.
Mucho Dinero made a big impression in claiming the 2025 New Turf Carriers Western Cape.
Under a positive ride from Aldo Domeyer, the gelded five-year-old hit the front 200m from home and powered away to score by a length and three quarters. (His paternal half-brother Triple Time had a rough race and may have been unlucky not to get closer to the winner).
Bred by Drakenstein Stud, Mucho Dinero has won seven of 20 starts, with the classy gelding having also triumphed in the 2024 G2 Anthonij Premier Trophy and 2024 Listed Woolavington Stakes.
He was a R1 400 000 buy from the 2021 National Yearling Sale.
Out of the Casey Tibbs mare Cash Register, Mucho Dinero is bred on the same Twice Over/Casey Tibbs cross as dual G1 Vodacom Durban July winner Do It Again and multiple stakes winner Young Love.
Twice Over has enjoyed plenty of success on Met day, with a son of the stallion, Double Superlative, winning the 2024 G1 World Sports Betting Cape Town Met.