Very Wide! MJ Byleveld drives The West Is Wide through to win the Listed Southeaster Sprint
The Cape Nursery winner The West Is Wide signalled his serious Sizzling Summer Season sprint aspirations when winning Saturday’s R125 000 Listed Val De Ra Southeaster Sprint run over 1100m at Kenilworth.
The 3yo son of Western Winter had looked a serious sprinter in the making when winning the Gr3 Cape Nursery and the Listed Somerset 1200 as a juvenile.
His win here would have put a smile on the face of his trainer Vaughan Marshall as he showed that he has trained on very nicely from those good beginnings in the now long forgotten cold Cape winter months.
Despite his welterweight of 63kgs, Cap Alright did things the only way he knows how, and he went up to lead from Happy Forever and The West Is Wide. The fancied Divine Jet was slightly outpaced down the inside with Jinzo, who had jumped slowly further back.
At the 600m marker Bernard Fayd’herbe played the Pipe Piper as the pack followed him on to the outside rail as Cap Alright continued to lead from The West Is Wide, Happy Forever and Twitter with Great Fox further back.
Cap Alright came under pressure at about the 300m marker as MJ Byleveld set The West Is Wide alight down the outside rail as Happy Forever chased down the inside.
Inside the final 100m it was apparent that The West Is Wide was not going to be collared and he went on strongly at 9-1 to win by 0,75 lengths in a time of 65,12 secs.
Great ride! MJ Byleveld rode The West Is Wide
The previously unbeaten Happy Forever ran a game race at level weights with the winner, while the 66-1 shot Jinzo flew through after his tardy start to run third and pay R7-30 a tote place, ahead of Great Fox.
Dean Kannemeyer’s Divine Jet finished in seventh after tiring late and running with the full brunt of the gale in his teeth and should come along with this run behind him.
Cap Alright faded to finish just behind him and 3,55 lengths off the winner . Twitter finished stone last, and is proving a dilemma for his new yard.
The West Is Wide, who races in the Jooste green and black, was bred by Klawervlei Stud and is by Western Winter out of the excellent Fard racemare Poppy.
He is now a winner of 4 of 9 starts for 3 places and gross earnings of R313 340.
