Top Class Field For Daily News 2000

Dual Gr 1 winner Jan Van Goyen heads the list of entries in the Gr 1 Daily News 2000 (Picture: Wayne Marks)

The Gr 1 Daily News 2000 has attracted the three joint second highest rated three-year-olds in the country as well as the highest rated filly and only three of the eleven runners are not rated above 110.

An important scratching from the first entries was the 128-rated Tin Pan Alley, although this is likely due to him being targeted at the Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge on June 6.

The other scratching was the 110-rated Copper Eagle.

Dual Gr 1 winner Jan Van Goyen heads the field and he and his fellow 118-rated contemporaries, Note To Self and Star Major, ensure a star-studded contest.

The in-form rider Mickaelle Michel retains the ride on Star Major after his excellent win in the Gr 2 WSB Guineas and there is a chance then that she will become the second woman in history to ride a Gr 1 winner in South Africa following the victory of Lisa Prestwood on the Buddy Maroun-trained Al Nitak in the Golden Horse Sprint on June 1 2003, almost exactly 23 years ago.

Hazy Dazy, who narrowly missed out on the Wilgerbosdrift Triple Tiara by finishing a two length second to Littlemissmillion in the Wilgerbosdrift SA Oaks, is taking on the boys in the Gr 1 Daily News 2000 rather than running in the Gr 2  Lucky Fish Woolavington 2000. The 117-rated filly will have her usual pilot Trent Mayhew aboard.

Some will view Hazy Dazy’s participation in the Daily News as a pity as she would otherwise have clashed with 117-rated dual Gr 1 winner Wish List in the Woolavington and that would have sorted out the title of best three-year-old filly in the country.

Wish List faces six other rivals in what is a small but classy field in the Lucky Fish Woolavington and among them is Rainbow Lorikeet, who was just 0,70 lengths behind her when third in the Gr 1 Cartier Paddock Stakes and she followed that with a runner up finish in the Gr 1 Maine Chance Farms Majorca Stakes over 1600m.

However, Rainbow Lorikeet will have to bounce back from a 7,50 length fifth in the Gr 1 Empress Club Stakes, where she was beaten by Woolavington entries Minogue and Callmegetrix.

In the Daily News the 114-rated Vivas Liberte will be having his first run in KZN.

The other horses rated above 110 are the 115-rated Chronicle King, the 113-rated Happy Verse and the 111-rated Malmesbury Missile.

The other three runners are the 102-rated Master Spy, the 99-rated Diogenes and the 92-rated World Of Royalty.

Below are the entries for the Daily News 2000, the Lucky Fish Woolavington 2000 and the Listed Lonsdale Stirrup Cup.