For years it was traditionally run on the first Saturday of February and is now a permanent fixture in the Cape’s festive month as the final Gr1 on the SA racing calendar every year.
The Cape Guineas changed its name to the Western Province Guineas in 1945 and in 1955 was run for the first time as the Cape Of Good Hope Guineas for a stake of £4200.
Bold Tropic gets up under Muis Roberts to win the 1979 Cape Guineas.
On Saturday we race for a Covid-19 ravaged stake of R750 000
The Guineas was the flagship event on the Milnerton Turf Club programme for a lifetime. The track where, once upon a time, the ‘surf met the turf’ boasted one of the best racing surfaces in Africa, borne out by the statistics which saw it host 52 meetings in 1978 .
The first Guineas winner Marion Island was bred by George Kramer at his Broadlands Stud and was raced by Mr & Mrs R Engestrom and Mr J Carney, who was also his trainer. The horse changed stables to Syd Garrett sometime after his Guineas victory and went on to win the first of the £10 000 Mets in 1957.
In 1963 Cape Mellow-wood came on board as Guineas sponsors until 1970. The race was without a sponsor from 1971 to 1974. Against the background of the Cape Town Festival of 1975 the race was branded the Argus Festival Guineas and won by the brilliant son of Kirch Flambee, Gatecrasher.
The classic became the Richelieu Guineas in 1978 and in the next two decades had various sponsors from Topsport Bloodline, to Bloodstock South Africa, the Cape Premier Yearling Sale and Grand Parade Investments.
The honour roll of winners boasts many of our most famous horses. Three of them, Colorado King, Hawaii and Shah Abbas, were exported to the United States, to continue their distinguished careers .
The modern era honour roll includes the galloping goldmine, Empress Club and the ill-fated star Horse Chestnut.
It’s a race where blood rules.
Galloping Goldmine Empress Club wins the 1992 renewal – no ladies on Saturday! (Pic – Joanna Mincione)
Past winner Captain Al is represented by the fancied Malmoos on Saturday. Captain Al’s own progressive sire son Captain Of All has Marshall duo Linebacker and Contact Zone carrying his flag.
Captain Al is also broodmare sire of Dean Kannemeyer’s lightly exposed Silvano’s Timer (Silvano).
Another Past winner in Jet Master has his sire sons Master Of My Fate and Pomodoro represented with in Tempting Fate and Russian Rock, respectively. Jet Master is also broodmare sire of Rascallion (Vercingetorix) and Jet Dark (Trippi).
Anton Marcus, who won the race in the 90’s as well as in 2007 on Jay Peg for his brother Basil and in 2011 on Variety Club for Joey Ramsden, takes the reins on Invincabelle for Brett Crawford – who won it last year with the exported Kilindini.
Newly remarried Piere Strydom last won the Cape Guineas in 2008 on Pointing North for Robbie Sage – he partners Legislate’s son Hoedspruit for Justin Snaith on Saturday.
Past winning Cape Guineas trainers with runners on Saturday include Vaughan Marshall, Dean Kannemeyer, Mike de Kock, Brett Crawford and Justin Snaith – who must feel that a decade has been a long time between Guineas drinks!
