Plan Come Together! Muzi Yeni gets Master Plan to rally down the inside to beat Black Wing.
Trainer Greg Ennion is a walking talking advertisement for the giant-killer potential of the less affluent smaller yards, and the Milnerton-based horseman ended a great season with a superb R700 000 Gr1 Champions Cup win with the Jet Master 3yo Master Plan at Greyville on Saturday.
While Ennion has trained some fair sorts of the ilk of Dachmar, Dramdor and La Mancha amongst others in his time,he was only averaging about twelve occupied boxes in his yard until international owner Fred Crabbia came knocking at his door recently. With a few half-decent horses, the yard has been turned around in no uncertain terms.
Never a man scared to speak his mind, Ennion had been very disappointed that Master Plan had not made the final cut for the Vodacom Durban July and the gelding’s win in the Gr2 Betting World Derby and Saturday’s Gr1 now prove his optimistic sentiments to have been spot on the mark.
But in fairness to the July panel, they can only go with what they had before them on judgement day. It would be interesting to measure the credibility, for instance, of the lightly raced Eton Square’s Gr3 Jubilee Handicap win against Master Plan’s flying second behind Beach Beauty in the Greyville 1900.Master Plan may have ruled his chances out though when subsequently running a below-par race when sixth behind Jackson in the Daily News.
Hopefully Ennion, who said that Master Plan’s last two wins speak for themselves, will accept things philosophically and enjoy a plan come together and a conditioning job well done. He also has a most exciting and talented young horse on his hand, who could be an exciting 2013 J&B Met prospect.
With the field scratching down to ten runners, the race was unremarkable, save for an exciting tussle over the final 200m and also the official time which we are investigating for legitimacy. According to the official record Master Plan won the race in 107,58secs against an official course record set by National Play of 110,07secs in a lowly Allowance Plate in May 2010.
The old warrior Buy And Sell charged off like a government official on the way to lunch and the 8 yo opened up a big lead from Tales Of Bravery, Black Wing and Master Plan. The favourite Chesalon was settled further back just ahead of Solo Traveller and Gold Onyx. At about the 800m marker Robbie Fradd started chasing Pierre Jourdan up and he raced wide in his quest to get closer to the action.
At the top of the straight, Buy And Sell came back to his field with the bright yellow silks of Tales Of Bravery challenging and with Black Wing and Master Plan making their forward moves.
Tales Of Bravery appeared to falter and tire as Black Wing surged ahead with Muzi Yeni getting the best out of Master Plan, who went on to win by a neck.
It is great to see a trainer stay loyal to his jockey, and Muzi Yeni, who won the Betting World Derby on Master Plan, probably had a few of his colleagues looking for the ride here. He was all smiles after the win and after challenging the national title log-leaders early in the season, Yeni will be probably happy to bid the 2011/12 season goodbye and start afresh this week.
Former Phumelela PRO Debbie Hawkins, who now works for the Singapore Turf Club, was on course to receive the trophy on owner Fred Crabbia’s behalf.
The Bass runners Chesalon and Castlethorpe disappointed.
Castlethorpe came in well weighted and finished marginally ahead of Chesalon in fifth place.
Chesalon failed to maintain his July form and his soundness issues must make him a frustrating horse to back – and even worse, to train. Gary Alexander will have to go back to the drawing board with Pierre Jourdan, who plodded on into eighth spot. Sean Tarry’s Whiteline Fever finished 0,75 lengths in front of the Alexander horse, and was just not good enough on the day.
Bred by Varsfontein Stud, the winner was yet another Group race success for Jet Master. He is out of the 6 time winning Royal Chalice mare Princess Polly.
Master Plan was a R350 000 purchase at the National Yearling Sales and is now a winner of 5 races with 4 places from 13 starts for career earnings of R836 100.
Result:
Champions Cup (SAf-G1) (7/28)
Greyville, South Africa, July 28, R700.000, 1800m, turf, good, 1.47.58.
MASTER PLAN (SAF), 56.5, b g 3, Jet Master (SAF) – Princess Polly (SAF) by Royal Chalice (SAF). Owner A L A Crabbia; breeder Varsfontein Stud (SAF); trainer G W Ennion; jockey M Yeni (R437.500)
Black Wing (SAF), 57.5, b g 4, Kahal (GB) – Fly Away Home (SAF) by Rambo Dancer
Solo Traveller (SAF), 59.0, b g 4, Western Winter – Strawberry Lane (SAF) by Jallad
Margins: nose, 1½, 1¼
Also ran: Tales Of Bravery (SAF) 59.0, Castlethorpe (AUS) 57.5, Chesalon (SAF) 59.0, Whiteline Fever (SAF) 56.0, Pierre Jourdan (SAF) 60.0, Gold Onyx (NZ) 58.0, Buy And Sell (SAF) 57.5
