Beach Beauty, the champion Dynasty mare, makes her seasonal debut and her presence will add plenty of interest
The visiting Cape trainers have taken KZN by storm and ten of the fourteen runners in Sunday’s R150 000 Gr3 Poinsettia Stakes to be run over 1200m at Clairwood are genuine out–of–towners. Vaughan Marshall made a terrific start in the Gr3 Byerley Turk at Scottsville last weekend and the man from Milnerton could follow up here.
Marshall is accompanied by his colleagues Brett Crawford, Justin Snaith and Mike Bass in a collective bid to make it a Poinsettia hat trick of winners for the visitors. Bass saddles five runners and holds the ascendancy in pure numbers.
Superior
The weight for age terms of the race make finding the likely winner a lot more of a mathematical exercise thanks to the handicapper’s official ratings, with the two obviously top rated runners likely to fight out the finish.
Dennis Drier’s champion Beach Beauty will be a major attraction. The sensational multiple Gr1 winning mare makes her seasonal debut after her Majorca Stakes victory on J&B Met day some 11 weeks ago. The effervescent daughter of Dynasty has won from 1000m to 2000m and will come out fresh and firing. While she meets All Is Secret at her own game, she will not go down without a fight.
Drier also saddles Torra Bay. The Australian bred daughter of Cape Cross has not run for 13 weeks and needs major improvement to come into the reckoning.
First Choice
All Is Secret, the speedy Captain Al filly, looks very hard to beat
But All Is Secret must be the first choice. She will be ridden by Anton Marcus who comes in for MJ Byleveld, who rides the stable second stringer. The filly is owned by Garth Miller and Markus Jooste.
The lightly raced grey daughter of Captain Al is top class on her day and she won the race last year beating the very capable Miss October. She also scored a terrific win in the 2013 Gr1 Mercury Sprint over the course and distance when she beat the brilliant What A Winter.
She made a return to action after a 37 week break in the Listed KZN Stakes at the end of March and was not disgraced when beaten 2,50 lengths by the brilliant Via Africa. She will strip a lot fitter on Sunday and looks the right one on the balance of things.
Marshall also saddles Countess Of Rhynie. The top two certainly stand out, but there is plenty of other talent in the race.
Bass Quintet
Mike Bass’ five runners include Majorca Stakes runner up Hammie’s Hooker. The smart daughter of Trippi was a sensational 2yo who has had very little luck in her 3yo season. While campaigned beyond the sprints of late, she has plenty of toe and is no slouch over the straight course.
Night Flyer
The second of the Bass runners is Fly By Night, who will be partnered by Anthony Delpech. The daughter of Jet Master was beaten by Lielums at her last feature start in PE, and she looks to be in over her head at level weights with All Is Secret.
She is probably still off her peak fitness. Bass stable jockey Grant Van Niekerk ride Lanner Falcon. She probably as other goals this season and while a distance winner, she should find it difficult.
Both Alascan Maiden and Pure Power are out of sorts of late and have yet to prove that they are in the class required to win a race of this nature.
Public Image
Brett Crawford’s Reflective Image comes off a poor run in the Majorca Stakes on Met Day.
Her trainer admitted at the time that the mile race was largely experimental as she had done well over the sprints. She had won the Gr2 Sceptre Stakes run over the Kenilworth 1200m at her penultimate start in a career peak victory and is a gutsy sprinter with a terrific turn of foot. She will be ridden by regular pilot, Glen Hatt.
Kotzen’s Jet
Jet Belle has her third run for Glen Kotzen and she has not run too far off at all three starts. She was a narrow runner up behind Reflective Image in the Sceptre Stakes and while she has run her better races over ground, the possibility of her running a cracker here remains plausible.
She has run well fresh in the past. Justin Snaith’s Jet Supreme has not raced for 11 weeks since her unplaced effort when over ten lengths behind Beach Beauty in the Majorca Stakes. The 2013 Gr3 Umzimkhulu Stakes winner is likely to need more ground and this looks to be a natural pipe opener for the season ahead.
Tough Task
Duncan Howells’ My Sanctuary is a very fast daughter of Antonius Pius, who may have preferred to compete with the likes of the top rated runners over 200m shorter than this. She must have a place chance at best.
Gavin Van Zyl’s Princess Julietta is a twice winning daughter of King Of Kings. She is another who looks to have an uphill task at the weights and while her sprint form is not bad, her run last Saturday in the Umzimkhulu Stakes was uninspiring.
No Secret
On the weight for age terms of this race, All Is Secret looks likely to get back to her winning ways. Beach Beauty has a season ahead of her with bigger fish to fry and she is unlikely to be ready. That said, she will be running fresh and is a fierce competitor. Of the balance, Hammie’s Hooker and the classy Jet Belle are serious place inclusions.
