Picture: Zinovi wins well on Saturday (JC Photos)
Piere Strydom in enjoying the three month contract he has with the ASSM Syndicate, which is a racing partnership between business partners Warne Rippon and Arun Chadha.
The partnership yielded a double at Turffontein Standside on Saturday.
Piere explained, “I’m already half-a-month into the contract. Obviously my weight is an issue, but if they need me I will ride their horses in Jo’burg and in Cape Town.”
His double on Saturday for ASSM was on the Brett Crawford-trained New Predator two-year-old filly Fatal Flaw and the Mike de Kock-trained Heavenly Blue colt Zinovi.
The latter could be one to follow, because he has always had a lot of talent and the breathing issue which had hampered his progress has now been successfully operated on.
Piere said three months was the time span he was offered and he added, “In the back of the mind is retirement, it is just a matter of when, but if I have got a three month contract I can’t just turn it up in the middle of that.”
Asked on which ASSM horses he was looking most forward to, he replied, “Apparently they’ve got some nice babies.”
However, he seems glad to be riding for owners rather than a yard and said, “Really I am just hoping to get on to anything that has some sort of a chance and bring them home. I remember in the past when I first moved up to Jo’burg I was riding for stables and for the first three months after joining the stable we would clean up and everybody would say ‘wow, amazing team’, but when the handicappers caught up with those horses … they can’t win forever … then you would get the boot. But then I just used to move to the next stable and the same thing would happen.”
He said he was still feeling strong and added, “My problem is the weight, I wish I could have been a little bit lighter. Also fitness every now and again if you miss a week or two you have to catch up with your fitness again. I have a good home regime and I don’t feel like I am unfit, but sometimes it is just nice to ride more often so you can get into that groove.”
He spoke about his chances on Champions Day on Saturday.
He rides the De Kock-trained Global View gelding Dave The King in the Gr 1 Premier’s Champions Challenge and said, “On form he has a huge chance, but he’s a very difficult customer. He pulls hard and so he’s not an easy horse to ride, but on ability he has a chance. He has settled down since gelding and Mike de Kock has changed the bit on him … last time he was definitely better. Hopefully after everuy run it will become easier to control him. It is a tough 2000m on Turffontein Standside and I’m not hundred percent that that’s his distance, but you’ve got to take the chance from number one draw.”
In the Gr 2 Wiolgerbosdrift Bridget Oppenheimer SA Oaks over 2450m, he rides the Candice Dawson-trained Master Of My Fate filly My Soul Mate and he said, “She runs a great race and then for some reason just doesn’t want to go, doesn’t want to pick up the bit, doesn’t want to do anything. So I’m not sure why she’s doing that. It will be hard to beat De Kock’s filly, Silver Sanctuary, but who knows, we can maybe run second.”
“I’m riding Humdinger in the Empress Club, but it is hard to beat Gimme A Nother.”
“The horse I am riding in the Derby, George Handel, I think on form has no chance. Fanie Bronkhorst said he might enjoy the distance, but I would have preferred to ride the stable companion (Pure Predator) to be honest.”
He rides the Weiho Marwing-trained Erupt filly You Bring Me Joy in the Gr 2 Wilgerbosdrift SA Fillies Nursery and he said, “I think the only way Almond Sea can be beaten is if she doesn’t see out the 1160m. I am just saying that because she shows so much pace, but she might even enjoy 1160m, who knows.”
He rides the Sean Tarry-trained Willow Magic colt DantonfromSandton in the Gr 2 TAB SA Nursery, “He has to up his game to win that, although last time he didn’t want to corner and the bit came through his mouth, so it wasn’t a nice ride. Nothing went right for him.”
Piere said the draw down the Turffontein sprint course does not really have a bias unless it rains, “If it rains the outside is better, but if it doesn’t rain it is sort of ok everywhere.”
