Century Sunrise, also by Century Stand (AUS) and bred by Sarahdane Stud in ZImbabwe, won the second race, an 1100m Maiden Plate, at Borrowdale Park on Sunday.
Century Sunrise bred by Sarahdane Stud.
This was the three-year-old gelding’s first start and he finished ahead of Burg’s Overture, Bachata and Go Galaxy. Owned by Kamal Khalfan, and trained by Bridget Stidloph, Century Sunrise was ridden by Donavan Mansour..
Photograph: Rosie Dorward
The Century Stand (AUS) colt, Paint It Black, sent out by Gee Racing, was an easy winner of the 1200m Maiden Juvenile Plate on Sunday, beating Al Salaam, Slick and Kooza by 2, 5 and 5,25 lengths respectively.
Paint It Black by Century Stand (AUS).
Quinton Riddle was in the irons and the colt is owned by Craig Adamson, Kevin Fallon and Kevin O’Connor. He was bred by Spotted Pig Stud in Zimbabwe and this was his first start.
Photograph: Rosemary Dorward.
It was a satisfying afternoon for owner/breeder Fiona Olivier with home bred Shezawarrior winning the 1700m Maiden Plate, followed past the post by Believe I Can Fly, also running in the Olivier colours. Shezawarrior was ridden by Francois Naude and Believe I Can Fly by Apprentice Norbert Takawira – both fillies trained by Kirk Swanson.
The three-year-old Shezawarrior is by Soar With Eagles (USA) out of a Rich Man’s Gold mare. Believe I Can Fly, bred by Sarahdane Stud, is by Fly By Day (AUS) out of Didoe by Kahal (GB).
The winners of the first two races on the Borrowdale card on Sunday – Paint It Black and Century Sunrise – were also locally bred, and both by Century Stand (AUS). Good to see Zimbabwe breds coming to the fore.
Shezawarrior with Francois Herholdt up won the 1700m Maiden Plate.
The Ideal World (USA) filly, Fig Jam, won the Bloodstock SA Zimbabwe Oaks (L) run over 2000m at Borrowdale Park on Sunday. Jackie Cocksedge presented the trophy, on behalf of Bloodstock SA, to the winning trainer and jockey, Kirk Swanson and Francois Herholdt.
Fig Jam is owned by Colin Bird and was bred by Mauritzfontein Stud.
The winning margin was 1.75 lengths, and Print The Pounds, Tallie Two and Latin Queen filled the minor placings.
Francois Herholdt, Jackie Cocksedge and Kirk Swanson with the Oaks trophy
Photograph: Rosie Dorward
The Bloodstock Zimbabwe Oaks (L) over 2000m is the feature race at Borrowdale Park on Sunday and Zimbabwe Guineas winner Print The Pounds will be back in action.
The AP Answer (USA) filly disappointed when finishing third behind Eversolucky in the 1800m TBA Silver Slipper (L) on March 8, raising some stamina doubts. However Bridget Stidolph’s charge may have had an off day, she is the only four-time winner in the race, so has to be given another chance. Donavan Mansour rides Print The Pounds for the first time on Sunday.
Tallie Two appears to be the main danger as we know she is distance suited. She was 1.75 lengths ahead of Print The Pounds in the Silver Slipper and ran 1.75 lengths off Merhaba in the Bloodstock South Africa 2000 (GR3). This filly was expected to shine in the Zimbabwe Derby, also won by Merhaba, but finished down the field. Possibly 2400m was a step too far but her rider that day, Apprentice Callan Murray, reported something amiss during the race although, post race, nothing untoward was found.
Tallie Two is trained by Alyson Wright and she will be ridden this time by Ian Sturgeon. If she strips fit I expect this daughter of Soar With Eagles (USA) will be hard to beat. Both Print The Pounds and Tallie Two are drawn well in stalls 5 and 3 respectively.
Of course the chances are that this is going to be more than a two-horse race. Continue reading
ALTHOUGH THE Borrowdale Park race meeting on May 16 was all about the 53rd running of the $50 000 Castle Tankard, and the winner, Yer-Maan, there were six other races on the card.
The progeny of Argonaut won the first two events with Equiano, from the Amy Bronkhorst yard, being first to score in the 1200m Maiden Plate. The two-year-old gelding, owned by Peter Moor, was ridden by Karl Zechner. and finished 4 lengths clear of newcomer Aiiyayaii. He was followed by Promising and Setswana. Equiano started at 13/20 and was bred by Cheveley Stud.
Equiano and Karl Zechner – an easy win.
Next up was Demagogue, with Apprentice Wesley Marwing aboard, an easy winner of the 1200m TBA Sales Stakes. The two-year-old colt is owned by Genghis Goksel, trained by Gokhan Terzi and was bred by Riverton Stud. Super Good and Go Galaxy finished second and third, with Starry Notions and AP Ikhaja deadheating in fourth place. Another result pleasing to punters as Demagogue started at 18/10. Continue reading
The St John Gray owned and trained Yer-Maan, with Quinton Riddle up, won the Gr1 $50 000 Castle Tankard run over 2000m at Borrowdale Park on Saturday.
The 53rd edition of Africa’s oldest sponsored horserace produced a thriller with the Gauteng based owner-trainer St John Gray winning with the lesser fancied of his coupling.
Lucky Sam ran second and was followed by another SA raider in Alyson Wright’s KZN based Warcraft, with Rock The Country in fourth.
Yer-Maan, by Jam Alley (AUS) is out of a Jallad mare and was bred by Graystone Stud.
The winning margin was 1.25 lengths.
The talented Yer-Maan proved to be ideally course and distance suited and showed no ill effects after a five month layoff.
He hadn’t run since finishing tailed off in unsuitable soft going in the Gr 2 Victory Moon Stakes at Turffontein last November.
Yer-Maan’s next goal could be the $40 000 OK Grand Challenge to be run at Borrowdale over 1800m on June 6.
Sharon Paterson and Quinton Riddle celebrating the big win.
…but difficult to find the winner in this open race
Fourteen horses will line-up for the prestigious $50 000 Castle Tankard (Gr 1) to be run over 2000m at Borrowdale Park on Saturday, and I am prepared to be surprised by the outcome. Most of the runners have claims to fame but also come equipped with queries.
The field includes 2014 Tankard winner, Equina; Lucky Sam who beat Equina in the subsequent 1900m Republic Cup, and three South African raiders – Yer-Maan, Norgay and Warcraft. These three will be racing at Borrowdale for the first time, they have come here for a purpose and must therefore be taken seriously. However, local punters tend to be over-awed by newcomers and we are not always right.
The Joey-Ramsay-trained Coltrane (ARG), carrying 58kgs, took part in the 2014 Tankard and ran a great race, but was narrowly beaten by Equina, followed by A King Is Born. This time the visitors don’t have massive weights to contend with but are they likely to outshine Coltrane? St John Gray’s duo, Yer-Maan and Norgay, will have supporters but I am going along with Alyson Wright’s Warcraft, mainly because this yard has won the Tankard twice previously, with Code Rock in 2012 and A King Is Born in 2013, so must know what is required. Not that I am convinced that Warcraft, despite his recent South African successes, is a sure-fire winner.
Continue reading
(David Thistleton of Gold Circle has been chatting to Alyson and Kevin Wright….)
Summerveld trainer Alyson Wright had her big Western Winter gelding Warcraft on a float to her home country of Zimbabwe a day or two after he had galloped the field into the ground under apprentice Tristan Godden in a handicap over 1900m on the Greyville polytrack on Saturday, and on May 16 he will attempt to land a third Castle Tankard trophy for the yard in the space of four years.
The Gr 1 US$50,000 Castle Tankard over 2000m, run at Harare’s world class Borrowdale racecourse, is Zimbabwe’s most prestigious horserace and the Wright’s went within 0,5 lengths of claiming hattrick of wins in the big race last year. They won it with Code Rock, ridden by Francois Herholdt, in 2012 and A King Is Born, by a facile four lengths under Deon Sampson, in 2013. A King Is Born failed by half-a-length to repeat his win last year.
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Thanks to the two most fancied horses, Merhaba and Mica Point, last Sunday’s Zimbabwe Derby, third leg of the Triple Crown, became a race to refer to whenever anyone hints that Borrowdale Park three-year-olds can’t produce the goods over 2400m.
As expected the Second Empire (IRE) filly, Second Light, set a blistering pace with the rest of the pack staying seven or eight lengths behind until approaching the home turn. With about 600m to run the field moved up to her and by the 200m mark it was obvious Merhaba and Mica Point would fight out this finish.
And what a finish it was watching Mica Point and Merhaba matching strides up to the line with Merhaba getting the verdict by a head.
Although neither earned a place in the first leg of the Triple Crown, the 1600m Zimbabwe Guineas, this pair dominated the second leg, the Bloodstock SA 2000, when Mica Point went down to Merhaba by 1.25 lengths.
By Mullins Bay (GB), Merhaba is trained by Gokhan Terzi, was ridden by Apprentice Wesley Marwing, and bred by Shadwell Stud. He is owned by Mr S. Armstrong, whose other runner, River Waltz, ran third. The early leader Second Light was fourth, 11.10 lengths off the winner.
At this meeting the Corne Spies yard teamed up with jockey Kevin Derere and produced three winners. Ebony Silver (22/1) triumphed in the first race, a 1000m Maiden Plate, and the Derere/Spies combination scored again with Prince Fireball (25/1) in a 1600m Maiden Plate, first leg of the Pick 6. Their third success was with Amas Amat in the last leg, a 1200m Graduation Plate where the son of National Emblem got the better of Wat’s Up Sarge and Supa Challenge.
Kirk Swanson’s stable was also firing on all cylinders. Road To Dubai and Francois Herholdt gave the 1200m MR 55 Handicap field a galloping lesson, going clear by 6 lengths. In the next race, a 1600m Maiden Plate, Goose Green held on to beat Neptune’s Rock in another nail-biting finish.
Some real excitement, however, erupted in the 1800m MR 50 Handicap where Swanson sent out the favourite, Nugget’s Effect, and Stirling Road. Nuggett Effect, with Apprentice Norbert Takawira aboard, did all he was supposed to, winning by 2.5 lengths – but that was after Stirling Road had broken through the stalls, dislodging JP van der Merwe, and cantered up and down the course for a while.
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The 15 Acceptors for the $50 000 Castle Tankard to be run over 2000m at Borrowdale Park on May 16 includes several South African raiders, among them Warcraft, a winner over 1900m. Trained by Alyson Wright, the four-year-old gelding is by Western Winter (USA) out of an Elliodor mare and is a four-time winner.
Warcraft (below) is seen here winning a 1900m MR 90 Divided Handicap in November 2014, with Athandiwe Mgudiwa in the irons. This Saturday he won a MR 78 Handicap at Greyville, also 1900m.
FINAL ACCEPTORS FOR CASTLE TANKARD
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Anyone who felt it was all over bar the shouting was wrong. Mica Point, nearest the camera, gave it all he had in the 2400m Zimbabwe Derby run at Borrowdale Park on Sunday, only going down by 0.10 lengths to the favourite, Merhaba, at the finish.
A great race, and a great effort from both horses. Trained by Gokhan Terzi, Merhaba, by Mullins Bay, was ridden by Apprentice Wesley Marwing. Donavan Mansour was aboard Mica Point who is owned by Rosemary Dorward and Tommy Millar.
Photographs: Gavin MacLeod
Below: Gokhan Terzi, on behalf of Mr S. Armstrong, accepts the Zimbabwe Derby Trophy from Nadia Barnwell.
Racing at Borrowdale Park in Harare - Zimbabwe 