Ramsden’s Next Big One?

Kingvoldt strolls in under Bernard Fayd’herbe to win the Cape Of Good Hope Nursery (Equine Edge)

The Western Winter colt Kingvoldt edged a step closer to being crowned this season’s Cape Champion Juvenile with a thoroughly professional victory in the R200 000 Gr3 Cape Of Good Hope Nursery at Kenilworth on Saturday. The horse with a classic Lammerskraal pedigree looks set for big things and he will now be aimed at the Langerman. His international connections could also mean that he will be lost to South Africa in time to come.

Saturday’s feature was delayed a week in what has now become a well publicised case of moving the goalposts. We just get the feeling though that no matter when the race was run, the classy 2yo would have won it.

Joey Ramsden’s Kingvoldt went to post a 1 to 4  favourite under regular pilot Bernard Fayd’herbe and he never came off the bit to beat six outclassed rivals by 6,75 lengths in a time of 72,77 secs.

Classy

It was simply no contest.

He races for the La Grange Syndicate, whose nominee is Gaynor Rupert. La Grange is the Newmarket home base of syndicate member and internationally renowned trainer, Ed Dunlop.

The colt was bought by Dunlop as a yearling for a syndicate with a view to his eventually training the horse in England.

Ramsden explained previously that Dunlop owned a share but that there was no point in his taking any of his purchases overseas until they were four.

UK trainer Ed Dunlop is part of  the Kingvoldt ownership

International Credentials

Dunlop,who trains 130 horses at Newmarket, has a fantastic international track record. He will probably forever be associated with that brilliant globetrotting race mare Ouija Board, who amassed more than £3.5m on her travels worldwide.

However, while Ouija Board has pride of place in the Ed Dunlop scrapbook, he is the first to concede that, having spent 15 years at Gainsborough Stables on the Hamilton Road, where he worked for the late Sheikh Maktoum Al-Maktoum,  his  move to the historic La Grange Stables at the start of 2009 to began the next chapter in his training career.

Dunlop celebrated another Oaks triumph in only his second season at La Grange, courtesy of Snow Fairy, who produced that dazzling slalom-type run up the straight at Epsom to win the Investec-sponsored classic in such devastating fashion in 2010.

Another of  his champions, and probably his yard favourite, is well known globetrotter Red Cadeaux, who began his career off as a handicapper. He won the hearts of racing followers globally, when coming painstakingly close to victory in the Melbourne Cup.

Red Cadeaux had become more renowned for the races in which he had gone down with all guns blazing rather than races he had won, but he finally gained that elusive Group 1 win in the Longines Hong Kong Vase.

Joey Ramsden has another good one on his hands

Bright Future

Ramsden has also paid tribute to former trainer and stipe Gavin Hunter for his part in picking Kingvoldt and others, saying:

“Gavin did most of the work at the sales. He chose this one and he also helped choose Variety Club.”

Kingvoldt possesses a classic Lammerskraal Stud pedigree, being by Western Winter out of the one time winning Parade Leader mare, Red Parade.

Kingvoldt was a R475 000 purchase on the Cape Premier Yearling Sale Book 1.

He won the Listed Somerset 1200 at his last start and is now a winner of 3 of his 4 races after running second on debut. He took his stakes to R256 750.

He has registered all of his wins over the Kenilworth 1200m but looks like a colt that  could go a mile in time.

So the 1500m of the Langerman should be well within his scope.

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