The first day of the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate festival on Friday is Ladies Day, headlined by the G2 Cartier Sceptre Stakes over 1200m, and supported by the listed Jamaica Stakes over 2000m.

And while the main event on Saturday will always take pride of place, the opening day has established an identity of its own.

Sean Tarry has won the past two running of the Sceptre with the ruling favourite – retired champion Celtic Sea scored seamlessly at evens and 5/10 in 2020 and 2021 respectively.  

And his highly promising three-year-old Sound Of Warning is at the time of writing the board topper with World Sports Betting. But of the weak 4/1 variety.

The Drakenstein bred and owned daughter of Trippi certainly has winning credentials. She is best in on official ratings, and comes into this off her second G3 victory.

Third placed Zimbaba has subsequently taken the G3 Flamboyant at Greyville to frank the form, and with Richard Fourie up Tarry has a fighting chance of completing the hat-trick.

Against her is the fact that she makes her course debut, and the testing Kenilworth 1200 has caught out many in the past.

Challengers there are aplenty, and chief among them looks to be Brett Crawford’s
Capitana. 

Ridgemont’s Captain Al mare is as game as consistent as they come, and after going down a diminishing neck to speedy stablemate Kitty Cat Chat in the G2 Southern Cross over 1000m last time can be fancied t turn the tables 1kg better off and over her more favoured trip.   

Not that Kitty Cat Chat should be discounted. The Australian import is an obvious improver emerging victorious in all but one of her five appearances.

Candice Bass-Robinson also has a great record in this race, and took it home with Live Life (2017), Magical Wonderland (2018), and her champion Clouds Unfold (2019), who was also runner up in 2020.

The always chic and elegant conditioner must have quite a collection of Cartier goodies at home!

She fields a quintet here, headed by classy youngster Amanzimtoti (now SCRATCHED). A line should be drawn through her no-show in the WSB Fillies Guineas, where she returned short in front.

Prior to that she had quickened in the manner of something extremely serious when easily defeating the winner of that race Chansonette in the G2 Western Cape Fillies Championship.

This looks like a prep run with the G1 Majorca on Cape Met day in mind, and Aldo Domeyer puts up half a kilo overweight.

But this is a class package, and you can expect her to be making things very exciting late on.

Santa Maria provides worthy back up. She finished like a train in the Southern Cross, and is far better suited by this trip.

That makes three Drakenstein owned and bred daughters of Trippi who are proper contenders in the form of Sound of Warning, Amanzimtoti, and Santa Maria.

Mrs Gaynor Rupert and her racing manager Kevin Sommerville will have high hopes.

Of Candice’s other three Dancetildaylight has plenty of upside potential and could shock, but Roll In The Hay and Iris will need improvement to feature.

Stable comments on mikebassracing.com go as follows:  

Roll In The Hay: Second run back after a wind operation. If she navigates through this, she could return to previous form, but she will be a long shot, and we can only be hopeful.

Iris: She is as game as you get, but takes on a mountain of talent, so we are just hopeful of some black type for her.

Amanzimtoti: A top class filly reverting back up the straight this time. She has the ability to sweep this field late and she will be right there. Each Way Chance.

Santa Maria: She is distance suited and her work at home is top class. She too will be in with a good each way chance. Value bet!!

Dancetilldaylight: She is not that well in at the weights here, and she will prefer further, but it would be no surprise to us if she fires late into the frame. Include.

Snaith eight up against it

Amazingly Justin Snaith fields the entire remaining eight!

Mercury Rising appears the pick of them. She was third in the Fillies Championship, fourth in the Fillies Guineas, and won the listed WSB Perfect Promise Sprint on her only previous course and distance outing. Respect.     

Keep The Lights On and Favorita (second a year ago) look best of their rest.

1 Capitana 2 Sound Of Warning 3 Santa Maria 4 Mercury Rising

Jamaica calling

The supporting Jamaica Handicap over 2000m appears wide-open, as any good handicap should be.

And rather intriguingly, the three at the top of bookmakers boards are heavily under
sufferance.

Black Silver (5-2) is ’out’ by 3,5kg, Silver Darling (4-1) by a full 6kg, and Do Angels Cry  (7-1) by 3kg on their official marks.

Of course all are still on the up, particularly
Silver Darling, who fluently won two on the bounce before a good second to Brett
Crawford’s She’s A Rainbow.

That one was then a respectable sixth in the Fillies Guineas, with her rating being raised 12 points from 85 to 97, or effectively 6kg!

So Silver Darling making similar improvement is far from out of the question.

A tentative first choice would be Crawford’s Celtic Night though.

She scored a couple of impressive wins before a mysterious no show in her latest.

The Vercingetorix filly deserves another chance and if seeing out the extra 200m will make them all run with a handy 55kg.

Andre Nel is having a great Cape season, and his So Flawless is another with solid each way prospects.

She was a respectable fifth to Marina in the G23 Victress recently, and on her fast finishing fourth to Hoedspruit in the G3 Legal Eagle Stakes last winter, will be suited by this trip. –tt  

1 Celtic Night 2 So Flawless
3 Silver Darling 4 Scented Mistress

Cartier Sceptre Stakes 

4-1    Sound Of Warning
9-2    Capitana
11-2  Amanzimtoti 
8-1    Kitty Cat Chat, Gimme Dat
10-1  Santa Maria
16-1  Keep The Lights On, Major Attraction
18-1  Dancetilldaylight  
20-1  Phil’s Dancer, Mercury Rising, Kwinta’s Light
25-1  Favorita, Maryah
33-1  Iris
35-1 Roll In The Hay

Ardmore Jamaica Handicap
5-2     Black Silver
5-1     Silver Darling 
7-1     Scented Mistress
9-1     Celtic Night
10-1   So Flawless, Do Angels Cry
11-1   Musical Glitch
12-1   Jasmine
14-1   Pink Tourmaline, Fynbos
16-1   Rewrite The Stars
20-1    Catchafallingstar

(correct as at 6:30 am Friday)