Third year apprentice Kabelo Matsunyane celebrated the first stakes winner of his career when he produced a polished ride on the grass green Bize to win the R150 000 Listed Oaks Trial at Turffontein on Saturday.
Matsunyane, who has now ridden 31 winners, only steered his first winner home on 7 June 2018 – that was at the Vaal on the Craig Mayhew-trained Heywot.
Kabelo Matsunyane guides Bieze to victory (Pic – JC Photos)
Nine months on he has graduated to the bigger leagues and he kept his cool impressively on the recent Vaal debut winner, who came in handily weighted but lacking experience.
Dropped out to last as Magic’s First led Out Of Sight and Abelie, Bize made good ground, and won easily by 1,90 lengths despite drifting in late.
She clocked 126.9 secs and held off the attentions of topweight Seville Orange, who looks a genuine staying sort and tried her heart out carrying 8kgs more than the victress.
Bred by Moutonshoek, the Alec Laird trained Bize (pronounced ‘bees’) is a daughter of Clifton Stud stallion Mambo In Seattle (Kingmambo) out of the Goldmark mare, Levantera.
Bize has won both her starts and took her stakes earnings to R162 560.
Bize was bought back for R100 000 at the 2017 National Yearling Sale and debuted on 22 January, winning over 1600m by almost a length. Her dam has produced 1 previous 3-time winner in Mistaken Identity – this is the family that has both roots at KZN farms Clifton Stud and Rathmor.
