The bomb dropped in the R200 000 Summer Country Championship 1400 Final at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Saturday when the mostly formless Diamond Rock swept through the centre of the track to win at 75-1.
Joshwin Solomons drives Diamond Rock to a shock win as Masterofthedesert (Louis Mxothwa) chases hard (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Ridden by Joshwin Solomons, Diamond Rock came from the clouds as the duo booted the Pick 6 minimum from the R17,90 minimum dividend of the second leg to R2830, 60 – with over 27 000 combinations blowing in the wind.
Just as his stablemate Devil A Saint (16-1) looked dangerous into the final stages, Solomons was stalking and kept the 4yo gelding Diamond Rock balanced as he soared clear to account for Masterofthedesert (25-1) under replacement Louis Mxothwa by 1,25 lengths in a time of 87,46 secs for the 1400m.
The well-backed Paratrooper (13-2) ran on steadily a length back in third, with Lady Look Alike (20-1) crowning a partially carried over and hard to find quartet.
The tote favourite Swiatek finished in midfield in a disappointing effort.
Bred by Varsfontein Stud, the winner is a son of Erupt (Dubawi) out of the Windrush mare Elysian Gem.
A R200 000 Cape Yearling Sale purchase, Diamond Rock is trained by Des ‘Tjoppies’ McLachlan and races for Denis Le Breton. He has won 2 races with 4 places from 16 starts for stakes of R275 926.
