See It Again, who was rated to win on official merit ratings, remains unchanged on a rating of 124 following his success in the Gr1 Daily News 2000 over 2000m on the turf track at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday 27 May.
The Handicappers were unanimous in their view that See It Again himself made for the best line horse, which explains his unchanged rating.
See It Again wins the Daily News (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
In assessing the race this way 2nd placed Dave The King, who was rated joint 2nd on official merit ratings, also runs to his mark effectively making him a line horse as well and leaving him unchanged on a rating of 122.
In the process of winning here See It Again fully vindicated the 124 rating he received after winning the Grade 1 Cape Derby in February.
Without Question twenty pounds adjustment for running 3rd in the Grade 1 Cape Derby proved fully justified after confirming that the run was no fluke when running 3rd in the Daily News 2000.
Without Question actually got 0,5 of a length closer to See It Again when compared to his run in the Cape Derby and accordingly goes up from 119 to 120.
There were also increases for the relatively unexposed recent Handicap winners, River Romeo and Street Art. River Romeo was adjusted from 84 to 107, and Street Art, was raised from 88 to 103.
The only ratings drop was for East Coast, who is down slightly from 112 to 111.
Gr1 Woolavington 2000
Rain In Holland remains unaltered on a rating of 120 after she won the Gr1 Woolavington 2000 for fillies and mares over 2000m at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday.
Here too the Handicappers believed that the winner made for the most suitable line horse, hence her unchanged rating.
Runner-up Time Flies was raised from 96 to 117, while 4th finisher Hold My Hand goes up from 104 to 115. There were also increases for the 7th placed dead-heaters Light Of The Moon and Peach Daiquiri, who both go up to 110 from 105 and 106, respectively.
There were drops for two horses. 3rd placed Silver Darling is down from 120 to 117, keeping her in line with the two who beat her, while 5th placed Marina was dropped from 117 to 115 to make her the equal of 4th finisher Hold My Hand, bearing in mind that there was no more than a short head between them here.
Gr3 Lonsdale Stirrup Cup
Sea Master has had his rating raised from 95 to 99 after winning the Gr3 Lonsdale Stirrup Cup (handicap) over 2400m at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday.
The Handicappers believed that 2nd placed Raiseahallelujah and 3rd finisher Aragosta made for the most suitable line horses, leaving them unchanged on 99 and 114, respectively. In assessing the race this way 7th finisher Rex Union also runs to his mark, effectively making him a line horse as well and leaving him unchanged on a mark of 97.
Sea Master wins the Lonsdale (Pic-Candiese Lenferna)
Sea Master was three pounds or 1.5 kgs under sufferance at the weights, which largely explains the five-point raise in his rating.
4th finisher Otto Luyken was no fewer than 14 pounds or 7 kgs under sufferance at the weights. Accordingly, his rating goes up from 90 to 103. There were no other ratings increases, but three horses were given a drop.
One Way Traffic is down slightly from 110 to 109, Shango is down to 107 from 108, and lastly Senso Unico was dropped from 111 to 110.
Listed Milkwood Stakes
Phedra remains unchanged on a rating of 103 after she won the Listed Milkwood Stakes for fillies and mares over 1000m on the Polytrack at Fairview on Friday. The race was originally scheduled for the turf course but was moved to the Polytrack because of weather-related reasons.
In assessing the race, the Handicappers felt that Phedra would at least have equalled the 94 she ran to when finishing 3rd in a similar Listed event over 1200m at Fairview in February and used that level to rate the Milkwood Stakes. Interestingly, in rating the race this way 4th placed Winter Fuhri runs to a mark of 87, having also run to 87 on the only previous occasion that she visited the Eastern Cape. Accordingly, her rating goes up to 87 from 82.
There were also increases for runner-up Tipsy Tina, who was raised from 81 to 93, and for 3rd placed European Summer, who is up from 81 to 89.
The only drop was for Franca, who is down from 96 to 93.
- Media release by NHRA on 30 May 2023.
