David Thiselton
Trainer Mike Bass’s pair of promising three-year-old Jet Master colts, Heldeberg Blue and Mountain Master, are both to be gelded but are unlikely to be on his float to Durban for the Champions Season in a couple of months’ time.
Bass said this week; “We will geld them to just try and improve their temperaments. I don’t usually bring three-year-olds to Durban as the going is too hard and they will stay behind for the Winter series. But it’s not cut in stone.”
Heldeberg Blue was all the rage on L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate day when backed from 3-1 into 12-10 for the Listed Politician Stakes, but his antics in the preliminaries cost him dearly and he finished unplaced. He played up again before Saturday’s Investec Cape Derby, so did well to finish fourth.
Mountain Master went into the Cape Derby off a maiden win and finished unplaced.
However, Jet Masters do tend to come into their own as four-year-olds and Bass is also known for his skill in continually improving horses, so this pair are likely to be big race contenders next season.
Contrary to his policy with colts, Bass said that his two best young fillies, the three-year-old Lanner Falcon and the two-year-old Seven Grand, would both likely be Durban bound.
Lanner Falcon, who is by Trippi, finished an excellent one-length second in the Gr1Avontuur Estate Fillies Guineas and was the first three-year-old home in the Gr1 Klawervlei Majorca Stake over 1 600m last weekend, thereby reversing form with Fillies Guineas winner In The Fast Lane, although she was unplaced in the Gr1 Maine Chance Paddock Stakes over 1 800m in between.
Seven Grand looks to be an exciting prospect. The Seventh Rock filly produced a devastating finish to win over 800m on debut after a slow start and on Saturday in a Listed Juvenile race over 1 000m she once again ran on powerfully after a tardy start to finish second to the well regarded Justin Snaith-trained Arria.
Bass said; “She was a bit slow away and very green, but she wants a bit of distance, so I’m not too worried. She is quite a mature type of filly, so will go for the Gr1s in Durban.”
Majorca runner-up Hammie’s Hooker, a four-year-old by Trippi, will likely be on Bass’s float to Durban where she will probably have to face her nemesis Beach Beauty once again.
Bass revealed that through the Beach Beauty and Hammie’s Hooker experience he now had an inkling of how his great champion Pocket Power’s victims had felt for all those years.
Bass had two winners at the J&B Met meeting last weekend, including River Crossing who swooped late to claim Cape Town’s most prestigious staying race, the Gr2 J&B Jet Stayers over 2 800m.
He said the five-year-old Caesour gelding would likely have “another go” at the staying races in Durban, culminating in the 3 200m Gr1 Gold Cup.
Bass felt that he had made a mistake entering his four-year-old Silvano gelding Gifted For Glory in the J&B Jet Stayers, despite a third place finish. “I should have left him in the Met. He prefers shorter and I will maybe aim him at the July if he comes on enough.”
Bass owns a share in his other winner at the Met meeting, the six-year-old Australian-bred gelding Castlethorpe, who provided one of four winners for a brilliantly on song Anton Marcus.
Castlethorpe was backed in from 12-1 to 8-1 and the win with topweight in the MR 99 Handicap over 1 600m didn’t surprise him at all.
“He was the best horse in the race by far. If you look at his Queen’s Plate run, he raced wide the whole way and ran a helluva good race until the last 200m. He had also been dropped to a 99.”
Castlethorpe is now back to a 103 merit racing and Bass lamented the lack of opportunities for a 1 400m to 1 600m horse of this standing.
The masterful Milnerton trainer expects to take about 15 horses to Durban.
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