The saying that blood will out certainly appeared true after Saturday’s rich Sansui Summer Cup meeting, writes Sarah Whitelaw.
Blue bloods triumphed in the day’s major features – with the R2.5 million Gr1 Sansui Summer Cup being won by the regally bred Master Sabina (Jet Master).
Master Sabina – closely related to Green Pepper
Interestingly, Master Sabina is closely related to hugely impressive Gr3 winner Green Pepper –with the latter’s dam, Pimento (Fort Wood) being a half-sister to Master Sabina’s dam, Sabina Park.
Green Pepper
Winner of the Gr3 Daily Sun Magnolia Handicap, Green Pepper is the third graded winner (following Gunner and Hack Green) to have emerged from former Gr1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate hero Gimmethegreenlight’s first crop.
South Africa’s Leading First Crop Sire of 2015-2016, Gimmethegreenlight is one of more than 160 stakes winners for outstanding shuttle sire More Than Ready, also responsible for recent G2 Choice Carriers Fillies Championship winner Ektifaa.
Randall Simons steers Green Pepper to a facile win (Pic – JC Photos)
Green Pepper, who like Hack Green is by Gimmethegreenlight out of a daughter of Fort Wood, is out of a mare by former champion sire Fort Wood. The latter, unsurprisingly, has become an outstanding broodmare sire and is also damsire of Breeders’ Cup winner and promising young sire Pluck (a son of Gimme’s sire More Than Ready).
Trip To Heaven
A son of last season’s South African champion sire Trippi (End Sweep), impressive Gr2 The Citizens Merchants winner Trip To Heaven is a half-brother to former Gr1 Premier’s Champion Stakes winner The Hangman (Jallad), one of the best 3yos of his generation before injury.
He is one of 65 individual stakes winners for his champion sire, who was also recently responsible for Gr2 Selangor Cup hero Gold Standard.
Gold Standard wins the Selangor
Trip To Heaven’s fourth dam is the very influential mare General Store (To Market), the ancestress of classic winners Al Bahathri (Blushing Groom) and Haafhd (Alhaarth), and numerous other high class performers such as G1 winners Heatseeker (Giant’s Causeway) and Spanish Fern (El Gran Senor), and Duke Of Marmalade’s top class son Big Orange.
This is also the family of Saturday’s Gr2 Remsen Stakes hero McCraken (Ghostzapper).
Smiling Blue Eyes
The Fort Wood influence continues with Gr3 Fillies Mile winner Smiling Blue Eyes –a daughter of Fort Wood’s great son Dynasty. Smiling Blue Eyes is yet the latest Dynasty daughter to make a favourable impression, with her predecessors including champions Beach Beauty and Bela-Bela, as well as graded winners Olma, Demanding Lady, and Fillies Guineas winner Alexis.
Out of the Badger Land mare Sage Blue, Smiling Blue Eyes (a filly bred for the classics if ever there was one) is a full sister to demoted Derby winner Sage Throne and half-sister to former Equus Champion and sire Russian Sage (Jallad).
Singapore Sling
The 2016 Gr2 Investec Dingaans winner Singapore Sling is by one of South Africa’s most exciting young sires in the form of Philanthropist. From the same Roberto male line as champion sire Captain Al and the latter’s champion sire Al Mufti, Philanthropist’s first crop of 3yos have already more than made their mark.
Starling winner She’s A Giver
Not only does Philanthropist’s first crop include the Dingaans winner, but it has also produced a pair of top class fillies in Sail and She’s A Giver –both runners in Saturday’s Gr1 World Sports Betting Cape Fillies Guineas.
Singapore Sling, inbred to the great Mr Prospector, is out of a three time winning daughter of champion sire Western Winter and former champion Whistling Dixie. The family of the Western Winter sired champion Ice Cube. The Dingaans winner’s dam is a half-sister to Gr1 winner Grand Emporium – who was sired by Philanthropist’s close relative National Assembly.
Master Sabina
Bred in the purple, Sansui Summer Cup winner Master Sabina is a son of ill-fated seven times champion sire Jet Master, also sire of former Summer Cup winner Yorker, and Gr2 SA Oaks winner Sabina Park.
The latter is a daughter of highly successful broodmare sire Sportsworld, whose daughters are also responsible for the likes of champion Hot Ticket (Silvano), millionaire Whiteline Fever (Right Approach) and G1 J&B Met hero Hill Fifty Four (Captain Al). Sportsworld’s daughter Gay Regina is second dam of last season’s Equus Champion Marinaresco (Silvano).
Intergalactic
The Gr2 Gauteng Tourism Ipi Tombe Challenge winner Intergalactic is the latest high class graded winner sired by the late sire Kahal (Machiavellian).
Noble Heir – very quick
The latter was responsible for a number of top class daughters headed by Gr1 winners Chocolicious, Noble Heir and Spiced Gold.
The four-year-old is out of a mare by the world’s premier sire Galileo, whose daughters have produced such English classic winners as Night Of Thunder (2000 Guineas) and Qualify (Investec Oaks), as well as such Gr1 winners as Rivet, Intricately, Lea, La Collina and dual French classic winner La Cressonniere.
A direct descendant of one of history’s greatest mares, La Troienne, Intergalactic’s close relatives include G1 Kentucky Derby winner Go For Gin (Cormorant), and champion and successful sire Pleasant Tap (Pleasant Colony).
Fortissima
This daughter of Fort Wood (who really exerted a considerable influence on Saturday’s Turffontein feature winners) won Saturday’s Gr3 Racing Association Handicap. By a champion sire and outstanding broodmare sire, Fortissima will be a valuable prospect when retiring to stud. She is out of Synchronize –by champion sire and broodmare sire Al Mufti.
Al Mufti mares have fared well when mated to Fort Wood (see Gr1 winner Heir Apparent et al), while Al Mufti sired the likes of Royal Aproval and Royal Fantasy when he covered the Fort Wood mare Davidia.
Fortissima cracks the 3200m test
Al Mufti’s son Captain Al has built up a tremendous record with daughters of Fort Wood, with this cross producing Gr1 winner Captain America, and graded winners Captain’s Flame, Wheredowego, Eighth Wonder and Fragrant Al.
Fortissima’s third dam produced Fort Wood’s great son and sire Dynasty, and she traces back to the legendary broodmare Lavendula – dam of champion US sire Ambiorix and second dam of the great sire Turn-To.
