The value of having a top jockey aboard for those gamebreaking match winning touches was underscored in terrific style again at Greyville on Friday evening when Anthony Delpech was seen at his brilliant best. He did everything right to get Dean Kannemeyer’s Dynasty gelding Solid Speed home in a thriller to win the R400 000 Gr2 Betting World 1900.
The Avontuur sponsored Delpech is riding at the top of his game and after his sensational Guineas double for Justin Snaith at the same venue a fortnight earlier, he was back amongst the silverware – this time for Dean Kannemeyer, a man with whom he has formed a lethal combination over the past few months.
Solid Speed (Anthony Delpech) holds off the eager attentions of St Tropez (Keagan De Melo) in a thriller
Delpech’s move to ride freelance has invigorated his career and injected new purpose into his riding. Between him and agent Deez Dayanand, they just seem to be making so many good decisions with ride selections too – there is no question that he could have ridden half of the sixteen horse field in the 1900.
But it is the decisions that are made once the gates are sprung that really count and that is where Delpech shows himself to be the complete jockey.
Anthony Delpech – top of his game
With Solid Speed parked some ten lengths off Silver Spring’s pace at the halfway mark, Delpech found himself on a less than favourable strip of ground and with the pace being eased up, he made a snap decision to take his mount three wide.
Those are the kind of conscious choices that confident jockeys make instinctively and besides the fact that it was to assist the 5yo gelding in maintaining his long stride momentum, it also gave him a clear launching pad into the straight – and may have caused the rampant combination to hit the front 50m earlier than would have been ideal.
Dean Kannemeyer – looking for a July double
But there was no turning back and Solid Speed galloped strongly at the 300m and looked to be going away from his field.
Keagan De Melo had his own plans and having come from lengths behind the eventual winner into the straight, he had St Tropez eating up the ground, chased by The Conglomerate.
In a thriller, Delpech had a race on his hands but got Solid Speed to dig deep – and lugging out into the left-handed whip, he came perilously close to hampering the chasing St Tropez, and unsurprisingly a race review followed.
It was a touch of Durban July 2015 deja vu for Kannemeyer, who has endured his share of nervous moments post race with the Khaya silks. But no further action was taken and Solid Speed was the deserving official winner by a head in a time of 115,31 secs. He went off easy to back at 5-1 and started tote favourite.
Assistant Barbara Badenhorst leads Solid Speed (Anthony Delpech) in
Joey Ramsden’s St Tropez was full merit for his second place and was having his first run in 24 weeks since finishing unplaced in the Summer Cup.
Dynamic ran on smartly for third, with the runner-up’s stablemate The Conglomerate a further head back in fourth in an improved effort.
The winner’s stablemate It Is Written was not disgraced in fifth 2,45 lengths adrift after being given every chance from his 1 draw.
Mike Azzie’s Greek Legend failed to fire and ran eighth, while last year’s winner Dynastic Power (25 on July log) ran a poor race. He failed to get lucky from his wide draw and was in no man’s land for much of the race. He has a mountain to climb in terms of July aspirations.
This race has always been a July qualification pointer with the 2015 runner-up Power King going on to win the big one for Kannemeyer and Khaya.
Here is the first July log – the next one is due on 30 May.
Solid Speed was at 20 on the log issued on 4 May and he must get in on this performance.
St Tropez was not in the top 25 on the log and he should come into contention, while Dynamic isin much the same boat.
A relatively lightly raced 5yo, Solid Speed has now won 8 races with 4 places from his 15 starts and took his stakes tally to R828 550.
Jehan Malherbe – good eye
He won the Gr3 Lonsdale Stirrup Cup last year, and then went into the Gold Cup, where he failed to feature.
He is a staying sort with a serious turn of foot and the 2200m of the July will be right up his alley.
With Delpech likely to stick with Black Arthur, Stuart Randolph could find himself back in the Khaya yellow and black and out for a unique double.
Solid Speed was bred by Willempie Engelbrecht Jnr and was selected and purchased for R600 000 at the Cape Premier Yearling Sale Book 1 by Dean Kannemeyer and Form Bloodstock’s Jehan Malherbe.
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Gr2 Betting World 1900 (SAf-Gr2)
Greyville, South Africa, May 20, R400k, 1900m, turf, soft, 1.55.31
1 – SOLID SPEED (SAF), 58.0, g 5, Dynasty (SAF) – Boston Tea Party (SAF) by Jallad (USA). Owner Khaya Stables (Pty) Ltd; Breeder WJ Engelbrecht Jnr; trainer D Kannemeyer; jockey A Delpech
2 – St Tropez (SAF), 56.0, b g 4, Silvano (GER) – Tanover (SAF) by Model Man (SAF)
3 – Dynamic (SAF), 56.0, b g 6, Dynasty (SAF) – Lanquid Lady (USA) by Theatrical (IRE)
Margins: 0.15, 2.00, 0.05
