In From The Cold

Back To Best! Jackson (Sean Cormack) draws clear to win the Gr1 Champions Cup

Horseracing’s equine prodigal son Jackson came in from the cold to score an emphatic win in Saturday’s R750 000 Gr1 Champions Cup run over 1800m at Greyville. The son of Dynasty looks to be back to his best and there were some very pleased connections at the post race celebrations.

The 4yo colt was the flavour of the day and being touted a potential horse of the year after he had rocketed home to win the 2012 Gr1 Daily News at 3 to 10 in great style.

Things may not quite have gone pear shaped for Jackson since then, although sucking lemons is not everybody’s cup of tea either.  A poor run in the July, saw Jackson bundled into cotton wool until the Cape season.

Two second places in the Green Point Stakes and L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, coupled with a fifth in the J&B Met , are hardly damning efforts, but we still failed to witness the explosive talent of early 2012.

A fourth in the recent Mercury Sprint breathed the first sign of life into hopes that the former champion 3yo was on his way back, and he took the next step with an emphatic  victory on Saturday.

Facing a good field that included the July and Daily News runners up, the Greyville 1900 and Cup Trial winners, a Jackson win was never in doubt as he soared clear in the final 300m to win going away.

Jackson won by 1,50 lengths in a time of 108,99 seconds.

The detractor vultures  may find some scraps in the runner up berths and say that the form is dicey.

Joey Ramsden’s recent Betting World Derby winner Silvano’s Jet ran on smartly for second, while Yvette Bremner’s PE representative Blaze Of Fire ran a cracker after being prominent for much of the way to run third a further length back in third.

The pacesetter Potala Palace faded out to tenth and 4,10 lengths off the winner, while the highly vaunted Run For It ran second last. What excuses for him, we wonder?

Then Daily news and July late flyer No Worries also produced no kick and finished sixth, if only 2,90 lengths behind the winner.

Patience Pays! The thrilled connections at the lead in

Mike De Kock’s July rejection Rock Cocktail never threatened either and ran ninth, finishing behind his stablemate Espumanti.

Winning jockey Sean Cormack, who just gets better with age and has blossomed this season, said that it was a tough call between deciding whether to ride Run For It or Jackson.

“I ran second on Run For It in the July but then I have done so much work on Jackson. After the feeling Jackson gave me in the Mercury Sprint, I knew. He is a champion and it was only a matter of time before he came back to his best. He was in the care of Dennis Drier, and against the background of the loyalty to my yard, that also swayed my decision to ride him. I don’t want to sound cocky, as it is a Gr1 race, but I didn’t want to know about getting beaten today,” he said.

A relieved looking trainer Bett Crawford said afterwards that Jackson had been put away after a tough Cape campaign and his Met effort:

The plan has since worked beautifully and I am thrilled . I must say many thanks to my old boss. Uncle Den (Dennis Drier) who looked after Jacskon. Then to the patience of Ian Longmore and Jack Mitchell, his owners who allowed me the time. It has worked. He has won three Gr1’s now,” he said proudly.

When taxed on Jackson’s future plans, Crawford said that matter was something he could start thinking about on Monday.

The National Two Year Old Sale graduate cost R1 million and has won 6 races and been placed five times from his 14 starts for gross career earnings of R2 106 255.

Bred by Highlands, he is yet another star son of Dynasty out of the one-time winning Cozzene mare Moonlit Prairie, who also produced Jade Bay (Jallad), who won the 1000m speed duel, the Listed Umngeni Handicap, three hours later.

A big well done to patient owners Jack Mitchell and Ian Longmore!