Cape star filly Silver Mountain makes her SA Champions Season debut in the R400 000 Daisy Gr2 SA Fillies Guineas at Greyville this evening. While she has been rested since chasing Million Dollar star Illuminator home in January, she could carry too many guns for her thirteen opponents.
Silver Mountain
This is always a fascinating time of the season as the talking has to translate into track action with the pretenders to champion status from the various provinces all converging to stamp their authority.
Silver Mountain’s clash with Joburg grey Negroamaro is one sub-plot that tickles the fancy.
Mike Bass has a trio in the race and there is little doubt that Silver Mountain is the stable elect as the top rated galloper in the field.
The daughter of Silvano has a cracking good formline that includes a runaway win in her own sex Guineas, a great under-a-length fourth in the Cape Guineas – which may have been an ill conceived given the fortnight break between the two Gr1’s – and really outstrips anything in the field – on paper.
Bernard Fayd’herbe – climbs aboard the Mountain!
Bernard Fayd’herbe takes over the ride from Aldo Domeyer and that could have something to do with the owners rather than anything Domeyer has done wrong.
She is well drawn and if not caught short by the right hand turn or the lights, she should go close –even with a bit of ring rustiness.
Joburger
Negroamaro looks to be her likely chief rival and the Johan Janse Van Vuuren grey is another to have lost her regular pilot. Weichong Marwing takes over from Anton Marcus.
The daughter of Fort Wood comes in fit and rather unfortunate not to have added to her CV with three consecutive feature seconds in top company at home.
She has an electric turn of foot but the fact that she gets there too late will not encourage her supporters to have another bank breaking go at a track like Greyville, surely?
Justin Snaith’s Bela-Bela has been rested 16 weeks since her third placed effort behind Smart Call and Inara in the Gr1 Paddock Stakes. The two mentioned fillies have gone on to great things (fair enough, Inara flopped in mixed company on Saturday) but the form is strong in girls only company.
Top man Anthony Delpech takes the ride again.
Glen Kotzen – high hopes for Our Destiny
Glen Kotzen’s Our Destiny has drawn wide and was well back after showing pace in the Umzimkhulu Stakes. That run may have brought her on and though held by Silver Mountain, she may be worth including.
The exciting Nightingale (a July entry as a modest three-time winner) and Taffety Tart are the balance of the Bass runners.
Nightingale won her opening start on the poly on 8 April to make it a hat-trick of progression wiins.
The daughter of Silvano has been spoken about as something really special and Grant van Niekerk takes the controls.
Taffety Tart was beaten in the Majorca and the Umzimkhulu Stakes and with a wide draw is the longshot of the trio. The daughter of Trippi was 5 lengths back in the Fillies Guineas in Cape Town and Silver Mountain looks much stronger.
Fromafar shocked when popping out of the woodwork to win the Gr3 Umzimkhulu Stakes. It is top class stuff to note that the Kannemeyer stable have stuck with jockey Brian Nyawo who did nothing wrong – but this is tougher and she has an awful draw to contend with.
Flying Ice was a length back in second and the Listed Devon Air Stakes winner has been knocking to win again – whether it is in this league, we are not sure – but she is a Go Deputy and they are flying all over.
Anton Marcus – rides Intergalactic
Anton Marcus takes the ride on Intergalactic for Sean Tarry.
She finished a good third to Inara in the Gr1 Empress Club Stakes last time and seldom runs a poor race. Her official rating suggests she has some ground to make up on the higher ranked fillies.
Doug Campbell’s Lala had decent local form before a Joburg raid which saw her run out of the money in the Gauteng Fillies Guineas. She didn’t fire behind Fromafar last time and is held by Negroamaro – and one or two others.
Gavin Van Zyl trained Bella Sonata enjoys a potential game changing 2kg swing with Fromafar for a 1,45 length defeat in the Umzimkhulu.
She did run was back in the Gauteng Fillies Guineas though and that run suggests she has some leeway to make up.
Tony Rivalland – trains Killer Woman
The Tony Rivalland trained New Zealand-bred Killer Woman won 3 of her 6 starts before failing to show in the Gr3 Umzimkhulu Stakes when 5,75 lengths off Fromafar.
She meets the Kannemeyer filly on 2kgs better terms but needs to show she can step into this level of competition.
Geoff Woodruff’s beautifully bred Caesour filly Alexa won 2 from 5 but then failed in the first two legs of the Wilgerbosdrfift SA Triple Tiara.
While just under five lengths off in both the Guineas and the Fillies Classic, she will need to improve to get past the likes of Negroamaro.
The Champions Day power combo Mike Azzie and Karl Zechner team up with the Trippi filly Shatoosh who has won 2 from 3, but against much weaker.
She is well drawn at her first Greyville appearance and it will be interesting to see where she slots into the pecking order.
