Richard Fourie edged within 8 winners of season pacesetter Muzi Yeni on the national jockey log with a well-taken treble at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on Sunday.
The Winning Form sponsored Fourie is one of a handful of jockeys who have declared their chase for national honours, and a dip at the R1 million golden carrot on offer by Hollywoodbets for the first jockey to beat Anthony Delpech’s 334 season winner record.
The Cape Town-based passionate hobby fisherman may not have hooked any big ones this weekend, but after a double apiece at Fairview and Turffontein in the preceding two days, his Hollywoodbets Scottsville treble rounded off a seven winner weekend haul that he will be very pleased about.
In comparison, the free-striding Yeni rode just two winners the whole week, and will be feeling the heat.
Fourie rode a double for the in-form Tony Rivalland yard, with two 3yo’s that both look half-decent and, while very early days, could give the Summerveld trainer a shout in the Cape summer season.
Enjoy the replay of the opener:
After scratchings, the first race cut down to 11 runners, but the Ndoro Stud-bred Strathclyde could not have been more impressive as he came home powerfully in the Mary Liley silks.
The well-related son of Vercingetorix is out of the Western Winter mare Zephira and cost R500 000 at Nationals.
Richard Fourie has King Of The Gauls in control (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
While Adam Kethro is Mary Liley’s partner in the first winner, Cape-based Robert Bloomberg shares the ownership in the exciting King Of The Gauls, another son of Vercingetorix, who set the record straight after a fourth-place on debut to win the fourth race.
The Maine Chance-bred colt is out of the High Chaparral mare, Grande Roche.
A real looker, he cost R700 000 on the Cape Premier Yearling Sale. On his pedigree, he should go a bit more than the 1000m over which he won on Sunday.
Enjoy the second leg of the Fourie-Rivalland double:
Fourie’s third victory was on Pomodoro 3yo Princess Azariah for Sean Tarry in the fifth, a fairer sex maiden over 1750m.
Having her eighth start, the Klawervlei-bred galloper put it all together after 4 places to win.
Time will tell how good Princess Azariah is, but one for the notebook is Mike Miller’s Flight Display who made up lengths to run into the money.
Sporting Post jockey Athandiwe Mgudlwa broke the ice on a month-long drought when he got the improving Quandary home for Hollywoodbets trainer Gareth van Zyl in the final race of the afternoon.
Another Vercingetorix to win on the day, Quandary is worth pencilling in.
With Monday a blank on the local roster, SA racing continues at Hollywoodbets Durbanville on Tuesday. Start time is 11h35.
