Entries Casino Sprint day(tu)

how is the difference between an andrew harrison preview and a dave thistleton preview... harrison sits on his backside and writes what everyone knows but thistleton speaks to every single trainers that have runners in the big races....what a fcuking joke

Bit off the subject but surely TABONLINE could of changed there Headline today (22nd May)....() ... O well probably not, that would means rewriting the story...()

Glen Hatt not riding Shades of Indigo

After results in past week,the Marshall stable seems to be struggling in Kzn now.
Hope Valdiva has enough umph to get into the history books.

Chill Pirates

By Tipster

Princess Victoria and Fly Me Over, Glen Kotzen’s Grade 1 contenders at the Festival Of Speed racemeeting at Scottsville on Saturday, both put up excellent gallops at Summerveld on Tuesday morning.



Kotzen said to onlookers as some other horses went past before “the Princess” arrived on the “beach” sand track, “Look at their strides and then look at her stride.”



She certainly has a huge stride for a horse that stands at just 15 hands and three inches and racegoers are by now well acquainted with her superb, elastic-like action and electric turn of foot.



Less impressive was that after starting behind the one-time winning sprinter United she had her work cut out to catch her by the end of the gallop.



However, Kotzen was not perturbed, pointing out that United, a 1000m specialist, was an excellent sand work horse.



He then recounted.



“My father once fancied a horse strongly for the next meeting and was perplexed when it was beaten in a gallop on the Summerveld beach sand. Joe Joseph was standing nearby and said to my father ‘the chestnut on the near side will win on Saturday’. He then explained how due to the way it drains the beach sand sometimes has a bias that can add up to lengths and he knew that on that day it was favouring the far side.”



Kotzen hence instructed Sean Cormack to have Fly Me Over on the far side for the next gallop and the theory was proved correct with the experienced jockey returning and saying the comparism in going was like “chalk and cheese.”



Fly Me Over was soon a length clear of his galloping companion and the effortless manner in which he did it had the eyes of those that hadn’t heard the prior conversation popping.



However, even considering the bias, Fly Me Over’s gallop was eye-catching.



He is an impressive specimen, a big and strong horse with the look of a sprinter, and as far as the Scottsville 1200m goes he is bred in the purple.



His father, the late great Jet Master, who has been Champion Sire for the past five seasons, was a twice winner of the Grade 1 Golden Horse Casino Sprint at a time it was known as the Golden Spur.



His dam is a full-sister to Cataloochee, who won the Golden Horse in record time as a three-year-old having broken the South African 1000m record before that in the Computaform Sprint at Turffontein.



Fly Me Over has only run once, winning over the Scottsville 1200m distance of the Tsogo Sun Medallion for which he is a 33-1 chance.



He could be the best outsider for, although he is still an unknown quantity, Kotzen described him as “a real horse” and reckoned that if he did not win he would at least go very close.



Kotzen pointed out that his debut winning time was quicker than two Grade 2 juvenile events, the Debutante and the Umkhomazi, on the same day, before calling it “an unbelievable time for a first-timer.”



On the downside, the form hasn’t been well franked with the Mike de Kock-trained Captain Lars, whom he beat by 3,75 lengths, finishing an 11,25 length fourth when starting as favourite for his next start over 1200m at The Vaal on Tuesday.



Princess Victoria’s form, on the other hand, can’t be faulted as she is unbeaten in sprints since her debut, in which she was green, and among those victories are the Grade 1 Allan Robertson at last year’s Festival Of Speed meeting and the weight for age Grade 3 Poinsettia Stakes over 1200m at Clairwood in her last start, which she won comfortably despite being considerably below her peak.



Kotzen described the superstar daughter of Victory Moon as a “freak” and is confident that she will bag her fifth Grade 1 victory on Saturday afternoon.

Thanks Hibs, just wanted to confirm at Scotsville for the Sprints it is best to be drawn in the low draws.

By David Thiselton

Antious is in a race against time to make it for the Grade 1 Golden Horse Casino Sprint over 1200m at Scottsville on Saturday.



Frank Robinson confirmed that Antious had made a respiratory noise in his preparation race at Clairwood on May 13 in a 1200m Pinnacle Stakes event and was coughing afterwards.



The yard have been treating him for the respiratory problem since then but are in a race against time to have him ready and will scratch him on Friday if his breathing is not 100%.



Robinson added that the horse’s preparation had not been ideal and the yard would therefore not be going into the race with too much confidence.



The Argentinian-bred four-year-old chestnut was many pundits’ idea of the sprinter to follow for the Champions Season after the devastating turn of foot he showed when winning both the Grade 2 Merchants and the Grade 2 Senor Santa Stakes over 1160m at Turffontein, so this setback will be a disappointment to many.



However, sprinters can sometimes get away with preparations that haven’t gone according to plan, so if he is over the respiratory infection by Saturday he will still be in with a chance.



The Michael Roberts-trained Mike’s Choice is the reserve runner for the Golden Horse and has been doing well in his work according to Roberts.



However, due to the presence of the 117-rated What A Winter in the race, Mike’s Choice will go in 1,5kg under sufferance.



Meanwhile, the Brown/Robinson yard’s two-year-old Grade 1 contenders, Counter Ridge and Go Again, and their Grade 1 SA Fillies Sprint contender Chocolicious, all put up good gallops on Monday.



Counter Ridge and Go Again, who run in the Allan Robertson and the Tsogo Sun Medallion respectively, galloped on the grass together and the filly finished ahead of the colt.



Robinson was pleased with both of them.



Robinson said recently that all of his horses had run below par while he was away at the National Yearling Sales and the fact that Counter Ridge had still managed fourth place in the Grade 2 Debutante over 1200m at Scottsville “showed how good she is.”



The Tiger Ridge Hyjo Stud-bred filly has early pace, a high cruising speed and the ability to kick off that high cruising speed, which are the usual essential ingredients required to win a Grade 1 sprint over 1200m at Scottsville and was the way Chocolicious did it two years ago when winning the Allan Robertson.



Go Again, a Muhtafal colt bred by Backworth Stud, won his second start over the 1200m course and distance of the Medallion and the form has been franked with second-placed Skywalk Luke winning next time out.



Go Again also ran disappointingly after Robinson had been away at the Sales, finishing a 5,1 length sixth behind Ottimo, My Jelly Bean and the demoted Contador in the Grade 2 Umkhomazi Stakes over the course and distance of the Medallion.



Chocolicious came in under the radar when winning the Allan Robertson, so Go Again can’t be written off as he is also well regarded by the yard.



Chocolicious galloped with Antious on Monday and remained in front of him throughout and it was eye-catching work despite Antious possibly not being at his best due to the respiratory infection.



Most pundits are viewing the SA Fillies Sprint as a two-horse race between the superstar four-times Grade 1 winner Princess Victoria and the impressive recent Camellia Stakes winner Welwitschia.



However, Robinson disagrees with them and thought Chocolicious would be in the Exacta.



He reckoned Princess Victoria would be the horse to beat.



Chocolicious has done her best when running from the front and could well set the pace in this event, even if those tactics would suit both Princess Victoria and Welwitschia.

Does Kotzen know that his horse's form is terrible? Nothing has even come close to being placed after that race. Does he know that the going in the Umkhomazi Stakes was officially declared as soft - and going does make a difference in times?

Vaughan Marshall will hold the aces in the Grade 1 Allan Robertson over 1200m at Scottsville on Saturday and although Valdivia looks the one to beat on the evidence of her three scintillating racecourse appearances to date, it is a badly kept secret that her stable companion All Is Secret beats her at home.



MJ Byleveld confirmed this after Valdivia had won her last race in facile fashion over the course and distance of the Alan Robertson, despite being slowly away and having to give chunks of weight away.



“The grey regularly beats her at home,” he said.



However, having said that he reckoned Valdivia was the best two-year-old he had ridden to date in a race in his career, although admitting that he had not had many opportunities to ride good ones.



All Is Secret, having won her debut over the Kenilworth 1200m by four lengths, was backed into 13-20 for her Champions Season pipe opener over the Scottsville 1200m in the Grade 2 Debutante, but was touched off by the Corne Spies-trained Straight Set at level weights.



This might mean she had an off day or otherwise Straight Set is a very serious horse.



The latter could well be the more accurate possibility.



Straight Set has been beaten twice by Franny at the very quick Turffontein sprint course over 1000m and 1100m respectively.



However, she appeared to relish the tougher Scottsville track and went through the ground, that had a penetrometer reading of 23 on the day, without floundering as some of the other two-year-olds had done on the day in the latter stages.



All Is Secret also ran all the way to the line but Straight Set’s resolute finish was enough to just hold her at bay.



Straight Set’s win in that race was no fluke and she will be a serious contender in the Tsogo Sun Medallion



In The Allan Robertson the connections of the likes of Counter Ridge, Franny, King’s Temptress and Lonsome Dove will also arrive at the racecourse hoping to win.



Valdivia, by the increasingly prominent sire Var, was compared to her paternal sister Val De Ra after winning the Grade 3 Strelitzia over 1000m at Clairwood in her Champions Season pipe opener as she showed amazing early speed and then kicked again late in the race.



This comparism held even more water after her last start as she showed just how high her cruising speed is after missing the break, effortlessly making up the ground and putting herself into a position to strike, and then showing an immaculate turn of foot, cruising through to win by 4,5 lengths to take her combined margin of victory in three races up to 16 lengths.



She will surely be the choice of most pundits in the Allan Robertson despite what All Is Secret, who is by Captain Al, can do at home.



However, whatever the outcome this year’s Allan Robertson looks to have one of its strongest renewals for a long time.



It is being as eagerly anticipated as the other mouth watering clash of the fillies featuring Princess Victoria, Ebony Flyer and Welwitschia in the SA Fillies Sprint on the same day.

By Tipster

The Mike Bass yard will go into the Grade 1 Golden Horse Casino Sprint over 1200m at Scottsville on Saturday with the strongest hand and they are bullish of big runs from both What A Winter and Castlethorpe, while Rushing Wind is also in good shape and has placed in this race before.



Bass’s assistant trainer at Clairwood, Robert Fayd’herbe, reckoned Castlethorpe was perhaps the one of the pair to beat when speaking on Tuesday morning, but changed his mind later after a blood reading had been taken on What A Winter.



“His blood picture has been a bit out but was perfect in that last reading,” he said. “He sprinted up on the beach before that and his work was very good. He has had a much better prep than he did going into the Computaform Sprint and is now closer to his peak.”



However, he added, “If What A Winter doesn’t win Castlethorpe is a good second choice. He has enjoyed a brilliant prep going into this race. He is fit and well, he is always a good work horse and has a nice weight.”



Bass is known for bringing horses to their best in their four-year-old year and both What A Winter and Castlethorpe are now that age.



Both are versatile types, both have plenty of class, especially the former Grade 1 winner What A Winter, and the tough nature of the Scottsville sprint course shouldn’t bother them if at their best.



What A Winter was disappointing in this race last year, but it was discovered afterwards that he had probably run the race with some small chips in one of his joints.



Rushing Wind, now six-years-old, finished second in this race two years ago to J J The Jet Plane, but could only manage eleventh last year.



He is also versatile and usually runs on well in sprints and Fayd’herbe said, “He has a few niggles that are starting to catch up with him but he is doing well and is fit. He always seems to run a place in the big ones.”

I'm surprised that Jeter isn't going for the fillies sprint, she is a frontrunner with alot of pace.