Piere Strydom gets the Tarry-trained Mia Moo home in the Gr 3 4Racing Sycamore Sprint. (JC Photos).
Sean Tarry is in flying form and bagged a treble at Turffontein Standside on Saturday including winning the feature, the Gr 3 4Racing Sycamore Sprint over 1160m for fillies and mares, with Mia Moo who was ridden by Piere Strydom.
Mia Moo carried 59.5kg off a 103 merit rating and beat the 80-rated Komati River by half a length to give the amazing Vercingetorix a double.
Vercingetorix lots averaged a record-breaking R1,707,143 on the select day 1 of the Cape Racing Sales March Yearling Sale such is the demand for this superstar stallion’s progeny.
Chrome Tourmaline and Elegant Ice were third and fourth respectively behind Mia Moo and Komati River on Saturday and the favourite Almond Sea could only manage fifth after another tardy start.
Komati River is in for a big merit rating raise because she was 6,5kg under sufferance.
Mia Moo provided further evidence that the Cape form is strongest because in her three runs in Cape Town she had finished 16th in the Gr 2 De Grendel Cape Merchants over 1200m, beaten 14,40 lengths, and followed that with a 1,45 length fourth in a Listed handicap over 1200m, running off a 103, and then ran an excellent 0,90 length fourth in the Gr 3 Splashout Prix du Cap, a conditions race over 1400m.
She remained off a 103 on Saturday so was surprisingly easy to back, shortening from 7/1 into 6/1.
Mia Moo jumped well from draw five and Strydom managed to slot her in behind Komatii River, who set the pace down the centre after jumping well from draw six.
Mia Moo travelled within herself and Strydom merely had to switch her outward for a run to get the job done because she passed Komati River with just a shake of the reins and passed the post while just being shown the stick.
She was bred by Klawervlei Stud and is out of a Captain Al mare.
Both of the highest priced lots at the aforementioned Sale last Thursday were by Vercingetorix out of Captain Al mares, one them, a Drakenstein Stud-bred half-brother to Gr 1 WSB Cape Guineas winner Snow Pilot, going for a SA record-equalling R9 million purchased by Greg Bortz, and the other, a filly vendored by Klawervlei Stud as agent, going for R4.1 million to Darryl Yutar.
Tarry won the first two races on Saturday with respective odds on favourites One Fine Winter (Wjhat A Winter) and Tina Lovelace (Danon Platina), who were both ridden by Ryan Munger.
Gavin Lerena rode a double for Brett and James Crawford, while Kabelo Matsunyane also rode a double.
The leader of the national jockeys log, Craig Zackey, is on suspension from March 9 to March 26, excluding the Royal Raceday at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Sunday, so Lerena has had an opportunity to close the gap.
Lerena, Zackey and Richard Fourie all had one winner apiece at the Royal Raceday meeting.
By close of play on Sunday the situation was Zackey on 168 wins, Richard Fourie on 164 and Lerena on 159.
It has been an intriguing championship, but Fourie could probably win it at will. He had already had 19 wins in March by the end of Friday racing at Fairview and is closing rapidly on Zackey, so if he decides to ride regularly in more than two centres (Cape Town and East Cape) then he should forge clear.
Allan Greef is in flying form in the East Cape and has had 110 wins for the season, just four behind the national log leader Snaith, although the national championship goes on stakes and Snaith is more than R10 million clear of Greeff, who is in second place.
