Yogas Govender and Martial Eagle win the 2013 J&B MET for Plattner Racing
Met day 2013. What a day. I’m fairly honest about the fact that I don’t punt, so with apologies, I don’t get excited about swingers, place accumulators or Pick Sixes. But I do get excited about horses and the stories attached to them. And on that principle, this past Met really had a lot of colour for me.
King of Pain seemed the horse to beat at the weights, but he drew badly and asking a 3YO to take on a Met field is a big ask (unless you’re Horse Chestnut!). Originally named Diego Rivera (after the South American artist), he became King of Pain after Joey went to a Sting concert shortly before his first race. But as they say, a rose by any other name smells as sweet and I’ve always had a soft spot for the spunky grey. He’s from the first crop of Greys Inns which lends even more colour. Greys Inn was owned by Mrs Bridget Oppenheimer and won the Vodacom Durban July in 2004. And because 2004 was the 10th anniversary of our first democratic elections, the no. 10 horse carried a special SA flag on his saddle cloth. Greys Inn was no. 10!
Founding a Dynasty
Beach Beauty was close last year and she won the recent Paddock Stakes by 4 lengths – no mean feat in a Gr1! What an awesome filly. She may be tiny, but she’s all heart and with her 2.5kg sex concession was a big favourite.
I have always loved Run For It. He is utterly exquisite and I thought his gallop was spectacular. He had been desperately unlucky last year and I clearly remember the disappointment etched on Bernard’s face.
Jackson just doesn’t seem to have much luck. The Queen’s Plate false start has been done to death, but he also returned in post-race distress and I’m not sure he’d entirely recovered by the time the Met rolled round. But the nature of sport is that things don’t always go your way and the pros have to roll with the punches. Both the horse and the rider had a mountain of support behind them, but somehow things rarely seem to go right for them on the big day.
The Black and Yellow
Slumdogmillionaire made headlines thanks to his early career and catchy name, and disappointingly scratched from last year’s July due to a chip in his fetlock. By Strike Smartly out of Make A Million (by Last Tycoon) he was cleverly named by well-loved thespian and racing personality, Jimmy Lithgow. Jimmy originally suggested calling him Jamal Malik, but decided it was too obscure and opted for Slumdogmillionaire instead.
Stablemate Bulsara cantered out in the famous Oppenheimer silks. Mrs O has a good strike rate in this race and her silks are no stranger to the winner’s enclosure. It was also nice to have MJ Odendaal back in the Cape.
Retired jockey turned trainer Gavin van Zyl is doing great things for local racing with his Team G syndicate initiative and he impressed me throughout his Cape campaign with his friendly and thoroughly professional approach.
Two for Marshall
Vaughan Marshall’s Hill Fifty Four was one of two runners to canter out in the famous Ingrid and Markus Jooste silks. This strapping colt really caught the eye and seemed well suited to jockey MJ Byleveld’s style of riding.
The second Marshall runner, Tribal Dance was purchased in utero by the Armitage family at the 2008 Equimark Broodmare Sale. Vaughan purchased him on the National 2YO sales and the handsome son of Tiger Dance impressed as a 3YO when campaigning in the Eckstein silks. He’s now changed hands for the third time in his short life at another dispersal sale last September. New owner Mrs Radebe was justifiably proud to have a runner in the big race.
Apple or Tomato ?
Need one say any more about Pomodoro than the 2012 Vodacom Durban July? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it and with the same team behind him for the Met, he drew huge support. The handsome (and still entire) son of Jet Master had the first class services of jockey Piere Strydom, who won the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint on another son of Jet Master (J J The Jet Plane) in 2010. In doing so he beat Rocket Man, owned by Fred Crabbia and ridden by Felix Coetzee – who respectively had Master Plan and Black Wing for Saturday’s Met.
Martial Eagle wins the 2013 J&B Met
Eddie the Eagle ?
While the tipsters ignored him, I absolutely loved Martial Eagle, particularly after that flying finish in the Queen’s Plate. I watched his Met gallop with a course vet and we both agreed he looked the soundest and happiest horse on the track. It is not often you see a sound 7YO still competing at this level and I arranged to drive up the West Coast to take a closer look.
Yogas is best described in Mr Elley’s words as “one of the nicest people in racing” and it is cross-my-heart true. I have got to know Yogas a little bit and he is not only honest and straightforward, but also one of the most humble people you will ever meet. Always friendly and professional, Yogas is a dyed in the wool racing enthusiast who has been studying racing and form since he was a child. He gave up his office job to pursue a career in racing and initially offering his services for free, spent four years working for Glen Kotzen. He then spent 6 months with Michael Dickinson (who not only developed Tapeta track, but has two entries in the Guinness Book of Records!).
Yogas joined the Plattner team as assistant trainer in 2006 and after Brett Crawford left to strike out on his own, Yogas became head trainer in 2009. He took his responsibilities seriously, clocking up his first win and first feature win in quick succession. His string is meticulously conditioned and he is proud of his high strike rate. Martial Eagle transferred from the Drier yard as a useful handicapper en route to being pensioned off. Yogas relates that the first time they worked the horse, the groom reported “eish, this horse is very tired!” However, with patience and the all important ingredient of time, he flourished on the West Coast and has gone from strength to strength, culminating in that eye-catching Queen’s Plate run.
Yogas supplemented him into the Met field (“the best R18k I’ve spent of Mrs Plattner’s !”) and when I asked how it felt to have his first Met runner his eyes lit up “I’m so excited!” We spent a thoroughly entertaining and educational morning at Rondeberg, Martial Eagle was paraded out for a photo op and we left with a bit of a feeling about this horse.
The father and son team of Andrew Fortune and Aldo Domeyer really deserve a book to themselves and slotted into the story perfectly. Andrew had given Martial Eagle one of his last workouts and left with the prediction “whoever beats him will win the Met.”
Tres Chic
Erstwhile mentor Glen Kotzen sent out Fabiani, one of the last great Model Man’s still gracing our tracks. The old campaigner has had a stellar career and the Met was to be his swansong before retiring.
But wait, there’s more !
Another lovely story is that of Garth Puller. He was one of our mega champion jockeys and partnered just about every big horse that ran during his career. He is a real character and last won the Met in 2005 on Alastor for trainer Sean Tarry. Garth only exchanged his riding license for a trainer’s sticker last year and sent out his first Met runner in Ice Machine. Another interesting snippet is that Ice Machine was partnered by Karl Neisius who has lifted every big race trophy South Africa has to offer, but is still chasing that elusive Met win.
Braveheart
I got up close and personal with the temperamental Bravura on gallops day and he is unusually tall and imposing for a Silvano. Of course he had the services of Superman Marcus which earned him a lot of backers.
D-Day
I’d thrown my heart into the Martial Eagle camp, but there was a lot of talk about his age, his draw and whether he’d stay the trip, but he was every bit as sparky as I remembered in the parade ring on Saturday. I watched the field parade with some of the Phum head office boys and was soundly teased about my choice. He who laughs last ….
My post with the photographers on the infield afforded a spectacular view of the stands and crowds lining the rails. It looked magnificent. And best of all, as the gates crashed open, there was an almighty roar from the crowd as the race got underway. The PA system is not always very clear, so the field were into the straight before I realised ‘my’ horse was perfectly positioned. 400m out and he was into unknown territory, but running comfortably. 300m from home he grabbed the lead with meaning. Beach Beauty was giving chase on the outside and MJ and Hill Fifty Four were in full cry on his left with Pomodoro digging deep on the rail. 200m from home Martial Eagle changed legs and kicked into high gear with Hill Fifty Four matching him stride for stride. At the 100m marker Pomodoro fell back leaving the front runners to fight it out. It is a thing of beauty seeing two evenly matched thoroughbreds battling for the line. MJ and Hill Fifty Four were flat to the boards giving it everything they had. Martial Eagle was also shown the whip, but he knows his job and had his challenger fractionally, but firmly at bay. Aldo folded away his whip and punched him out across the line.
Opinion
The peanut gallery has been in full voice, complaining about the Cape crawl, the tactics, the luck in running, yadda yadda yadda. Steve Haskin once wrote a wonderful piece titled The Unbeatable Horse. In it he writes “Throughout history, there have been numerous horses who, for one or two races, turned in performances so extraordinary, you can’t imagine anyone beating them. Often, these horses were meant for great things, but were hampered by a variety of problems… When everything came together perfectly, however, that potential greatness surfaced, and pity anyone who happened to cross paths with them on that day”. He goes on to say “Greatness can emerge anytime, anywhere, and from anyone” and I’m going to add “at any age”.
To the detractors out there – say they got lucky if it makes you feel better. But know this, Martial Eagle showed all the qualities that Mr Haskin demands in a champion – speed, stamina, courage, fast-closing fractions and class and it was a privilege to witness.
Rainbow Nation
I chatted to a scribe from the South China Morning Post who said he loved the back stories to Saturday’s winning connections – “we don’t get so much of that colour in Hong Kong”.
Well, if it’s colour you want, South Africa is the place to be. We have very special horses, characters and stories and it’s those stories that really make racing worth following.
I didn’t follow much racing when I lived abroad because I didn’t know the horses or the people, so I had no-one to follow (or any tails to hang on!). But when a big horse like Zenyatta or Black Caviar or Frankel comes along, we get to know them and their connections and we get involved in their stories and then we want to get behind them and see them succeed. The stories and connections and histories are where the real magic lies. It’s what really makes racing come alive and gives it meaning. Because suddenly we’re involved and it becomes fun.
A few months ago Martial Eagle was nothing but a useful handicapper and a week before the Met, they were discussing retirement plans. Now he’s a Met winner and on top of the world.
These are the stories we keep coming back for.
