Got It! Derreck David clenches his fist in elation as Amanee goes on to win the Gr2 KRA Fillies Guineas at Greyville
A former Gr1 course and distance winner stepped out of the shadows to grab the limelight by winning a drama-filled R250 000 KRA Fillies Guineas run over 1600m at Greyville last Saturday. Once again the Mike De Kock magic did the trick.
Keeping good horses on the boil is just one of the many challenges facing the top trainers and the smart Amanee had come off three tough Group race efforts in the space of four weeks, when she went to post for the Fillies’ classic on Saturday. Her most recent outing was just seven days previously when she had run a four length fifth to Hawker Hunter in the Gr2 Gerald Rosenberg over 2000m at Turffontein on Champions Day.
Despite the exertions, De Kock put her on the bus for Durban and she came out firing on all cylinders to win in impressive style. The race was marred by an unfortunate incident that saw jockey Alec Forbes being dislodged from the favourite Bambina Stripes at around the 1200m marker. It appears that she clipped heels. A cruel game this and after their Champions Day disappointment, trainer Dennis Drier, jockey Forbes and owner Knut Haug must be wondering what next? Racing has a knack of teaching us the hard lessons of taking the good with the bad.
Beyond the Bambina Stripes incident, the race went smoothly with Anton Marcus taking the Wendy Whitehead-trained 12-1 shot Reason To Believe up to lead early. She was overtaken by Miss Ipanema who went up to make the pace for her fancied stablemate Bambina Stripes, who at that point was loping along comfortably towards the rear. Marcus also then eased Reason To Believe back to third and was passed by the De Kock runner Tajmeel.
Forbes was dislodged at about the 1200m marker and both Razzle Dazzle Rose and the eventual winner Amanee had to take evasive action as they were behind her.
Mike De Kock. Another Graded feature winner
As the field went for home Marcus pressed the button and Reason To Believe swept forward looking very dangerous while Tajmeel was travelling with what looked like a double handful wider out. In a drive to the line Felix The Cat and Amanee took off from some way back and dashed through, with the latter finishing the stronger under Derreck David in the Sheikh Maktoum yellow and blue.
Backed from 16-1 to start 11-2, Amanee showed her liking for the mile to win her fourth race.
Reason To Believe stayed on doggedly to be beaten 0,75 lengths into second, while the ever-game Felix The Cat can always be relied upon to do her best and was a further 0,25 length back in third.
Beyond the winner, the run of the race must be credited to Glen Kotzen’s Spectrum filly Beloved Betty, who charged through late at 25-1 to finish fourth and only 1,05 lengths off the winner. She looks like she needs 200m further.
The disappointments include the winner’s well fancied stablemate Tajmeel, who failed dismally at her first reach in the big league. She was supported from 7-1 to 3-1 but could only finish sixth and 6,3 lengths behind. She had nothing to come when the chips were down late in the race and punters no doubt expected better, as she had won her two previous starts by a combined eleven lengths and looked progressive.
Amanee had flattered somewhat to deceive by running fifth at her previous four starts after winning the Gr1 Thekwini Stakes over this course and distance on the final day of last season. That feature was run on very soft going and she had a certain Ilha Bela sixteen lengths behind her. She then ran fifth in a progress plate, before finishing in the same position behind Bambina Stripes in the Gr1 SA Fillies Classic, then behind Europa Point in the Gr1 Empress Club Stakes and finally behind Hawker Hunter in the Gr2 Gerald Rosenberg on Champions Day last weekend.
Amanee has won four of her eleven starts for career earnings of R659 000. She was bred in Australia by her owner Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum. She is by the nineteen year old stallion Pivotal, who stands this year at a fee of GBP45 000. She is out of the American-bred Woodman mare Moon Is Up. Her dam is a Gr3 placed stakes winner in France and a half-sister to stallions Kingmambo, Kitalpha and Judpot.
She is extremely well-bred but how good is Amanee really? Unlike the standout colts, the fillies picture is hazy with a few mixed results and in and out performances confusing opinions. Typical women!
The favourite’s freak disappointment underlined the unpredictable nature of this great game. It also clouded the result, so we will never know what may have been. Ironically Amanee, together with the Govender-trained Razzle Dazzle Rose, took the brunt of the resulting interference as they were in the Bambina Stripes’ slipstream when the incident occurred.
All told, Gr2’s are always good to win, and we will be looking for Amanee to carry her form through Champions Season. The De Kock machine just marches on.
Result:
SA Fillies Guineas (SAf-G2) (5/5)
Greyville, South Africa, May 5, R250.000, 1600m, turf, good, 1.35.63 (CR
1.32.77).
AMANEE (AUS), 58.0, br f 3, Pivotal (GB) – Moon Is Up by Woodman. Owner &
breeder Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum (AUS); trainer M F de Kock;
jockey D David (R165.761)
Reason To Believe (SAF), 58.0, b f 3, Captain Al (SAF) – Crown Ridge (SAF)
by Caesour
Felix The Cat (SAF), 58.0, b f 3, Black Minnaloushe – Subyan Dreams (GB) by
Spectrum (IRE)
Margins: ¾, nk, nose
Also ran: Beloved Betty (SAF) 58.0, Miss Ipanema (AUS) 58.0, Tajmeel (AUS)
58.0, Razzle Dazzle Rose (SAF) 58.0, Bermuda Sloop (SAF) 58.0, Top Talent
(SAF) 58.0, Awesome Beauty (SAF) 58.0, Bambina Stripes (ARG) 58.0
