Ashburton based trainer Duncan Howells saddles half the field in a high quality Pinnacle Stakes run on the Scottsville inside track on Sunday. The R120 000 event takes pride of place on a national racing programme devoid of any feature fixtures and holds plenty of interest, with Mambo In Seattle’s smart daughter Same Jurisdiction having her final stretch before departing for her Cape Summer campaign.
The 1400m contest includes a handful of smart stakes performers of varying disciplines and should prove a treat for those making the long trek up the N3 to the KZN Capital.
Duncan Howells’s assistant Cathy Rymill confirmed, as we went to press, that the former KZN Champion yard expected a big run from the multiple Gr1 winning 4yo, Same Jurisdiction.
“She is headed for the Cape Summer Season, with the Majorca as her likely target. It makes sense to keep her ticking over and give her a nice run here,” said Cathy, who confirmed that Same Jurisdiction was the stable elect.
Anton Marcus will partner the lightly raced Klawervlei Stud-bred flyer, who won such a cracker when beating Woolavington winner Smart Call in the Gr1 Garden Province Stakes on July day.
Rested 9 weeks and with a long and demanding season ahead of her, she will not be near her peak – but looks good enough to gallop them off their feet.
Her four stablemates look to be making up numbers and the best could be the lightly weighted daughter of Dynasty, Sabaha.
“Sabaha is a talented filly and has a handy galloping weight. She won’t be going down to the Cape as she is a temperamental sort who we feel is best kept to her own environment. We may look at raiding Joburg with her,” confirmed Cathy.
She said races were quite difficult to find for the likes of Crime Victim, who had a high merit rating and would be having a run over a distance short of his best.
Brett Crawford’s 2013 Selangor Cup winner De Kock has drawn at pole position and showed a flicker of hope when staying on well behind the above average Brutal Force last time out.
The son of Dynasty will need to confirm the improvement after a dismally disappointing run of form.
Of the rest, Gavin Van Zyl’s topweighted No Worries is a seasoned and battle hardened sort who can pace it with the best on his day.
He battled to assert himself in the latter part of the KZN Champions Season programme and finished a well beaten 6,55 lengths behind Futura in the Gr1 Champions Cup at his last start.
He could well prove competitive out of the Gr1 spotlight and is a powerful frontrunner and a difficult fellow to peg back, when in the mood.
His stablemate M L Jet is a mercurial talent, who ran some outstanding races as a 3yo.
The former Vaughan Marshall resident has failed to live up to his early form and after his disappointing Darley Arabian polytrack effort on the delayed Super Saturday behind Night Trip comes in with plenty to prove.
In his favour could be the eyecatching ‘jockey strike’ of Anthony Delpech, and he only needs to reproduce his best to be competitive at his first Scottsville run.
Colin Scott’s Dynasty 8yo Fourth Estate has not seen the winner’s enclosure since finishing well in the 2014 Gr3 Christmas Handicap. He enjoys a 4kg claim but will need to up his game dramatically.
Former Duncan Howells’ runner King Of Torts is now based with Gary Rich but has no recent form to recommend him and would be a bomb of a winner.
Confident
Same Jursidiction is a confident selection to show her class and pay her Cape travelling expenses with a win.
M L Jet and De Kock could challenge for minor money, with the frontrunning No Worries always a danger, if things go his way.