The Varsfontein Stud team are celebrating their 50th anniversary this year and underscored another great season as their home-bred Jet Master stallion Master Of My Fate’s daughter Splicethemainbrace made it a perfect five, and three stakes features on the trot, with a courageous victory in the R150 000 Listed Lady’s Slipper Stakes at Fairview on Friday.
Splicethemainbrace (Richard Fourie) ranges up outside of Happy Holly (Calvin Habib) in a thrilling finish to the Fairview feature (Pic – Pauline Herman)
In a dramatic race where the winner had to survive an objection on the grounds of interference in the latter stages, and having her first outing beyond the sprints, Splicethemainbrace started a red-hot 7-10 order to make it 5 wins from 5 starts and duly obliged in a tussle over the last 100m with long-time pacesetter Happy Holly (7-2).
While Happy Holly appeared to gain a second breath in the final stages, Richard Fourie, who has been aboard at all of her quintet of victories, rode Splicethemainbrace with confidence, to almost flatter the runner-up and gain a 0,10 victory in a time of 86,12 secs.
The objection deposit was refunded.
The Snaith visitor Be Merry (6-1) was beaten a further 4,25 lengths back in third.
Splicethemainbrace, who looks a good thing to lift the regional championship honours in her category this term, is out of the Sail From Seattle mare Summer Cruise and is a full-sister to the useful Summer Odyssey, who ran fourth in last year’s Listed East Cape Fillies Nursery.
The Alan Greeff-trained unbeaten two-year-old has earned R390 000 and was a R200 000 purchase from the 2023 August Two Year Old Sale.
