Crown Of Gold (Ray Danielson) powers home to beat Paddy O’Reilly (Bernard Fayd’herbe) (Pic: Coastal Photos)
Tara Laing’s crack stayer Crown Of Gold is on track for a hat-trick in South Africa’s longest race to be run at Fairview on 26 June. The son of Silvano downed classy Cape challenger Paddy O’Reilly in Friday’s R150 000 Listed Glenlair Trophy run over 3200m and looks all set to go the 400m extra in the PE Gold Cup.
Despite a 5kg swing in the weights against him, Crown Of Gold repeated his Glenlair Trophy feat of 2014 when he staved off the challenge of Mike Stewart’s Noordhoek raider by exactly a half length again in a thrilling finish to the 3200m event.
He has also won the PE Gold Cup for two years running.
It was a good afternoon for the Laing-Danielson-Jooste combination after the consistent Sir Duke had won the previous race, the Appletiser Fairview 1400 (nbt) in the same silks.
With pace an obviously scarce commodity in the 3200m seven horse feature field, Stallone Naidoo took Western Wonder out to lead Taarish, with Crown Of Gold edging Rushing Elf, who cruised just ahead of Le Capitane, with Paddy O’Reilly and Drill Sargeant at the rear.
Big race Raymond Danielson edged Crown Of Gold into second at the 2000m marker but S’manga Khumalo swapped placings 400m further on as the pace picked up marginally.
Into the run for home Western Wonder tired as Taarish moved up with Crown Of Gold galloping strongly and Paddy O’Reilly looking for a run.
Crown of Gold hit the front at the 200m and with Paddy O’ Reilly and his stablemate Drill Sargeant chasing him home, it was clear that Danielson had judged his ride to perfection.
The underrated rider, who was to score a seventh career Gr1 win in the Daily News at Greyville on Saturday, said that his versatile mount had ‘just lost his balance that last bit but had won a good race.’
An excited trainer Tara Laing said that the PE Gold Cup ‘could be a match race’ and that she was fortunate to have two such complementary horses in the race.
Tara and Stingray Danielson-top combination in PE
“Crown Of Gold is versatile – he can outsprint them in need. While the little horse Drill Sargeant outstays them – and what a great race he ran to come on late for third!” she said.
Crown Of Gold’s official winning margin was a half length and he won in a time of 213,22 secs.
Bred by Midlands Equine, the R225 000 National Yearling Sale graduate was formerly trained by Joey Ramsden in Cape Town – but is a leading stayer in the Eastern Cape these days. He has won 9 races with 14 places from 38 starts and R766 160 in stakes.
He is by Silvano out of the Australian bred Palace Music mare, Palace Bride. She has produced stakes winning progeny from 1200m to 3600m.
The family includes the likes of Silver Mist (Western Winter), Shades Of Indigo (Indigo Magic) and Ze Kaiser.
Roll on the PE Gold Cup. It may not be high on the status race pecking order – but there will be entertainment aplenty.
