With the popular Vodacom Durban July winner Kommetdieding failing to produce a fairytale season debut, Justin Snaith saddled a rare 14-1 winner when the Ridgemont-bred Warrior won the #Thisisracing Cape Mile at a sunny Kenilworth on Saturday.
While Kommetdieding ran on well for third, and was definitely not disgraced in defeat, Warrior benefitted from an industrious ride by the mercurial Grant van Niekerk, who always had his mount in contention after Rockin’ Ringo and Captain Flinders had done the early bidding.
Grant van Niekerk steers Warrior to victory as Anton Marcus and the consistent Rascallion chase hard (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Despite drifting outwards late in the race, Warrior showed no ring rustiness after his 24 week break and stayed on best for a half length victory over perennial but uber consistent bridesmaid Rascallion (5-1).
Warrior clocked 98,68 secs for the mile.
Odds-on favourite Kommetdieding was given a confident and quiet ride under his 62kg topweight by Gavin Lerena and ran on steadily for third, three quarters of a length back. He remains on target for the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and the Cape Met.
Winner of last season’s Gr3 World Sports Betting Variety Club Mile, Warrior was having his first start since finishing fifth in the Gr3 WSB Legal Eagle Stakes in May.
A winner of 4 races with 2 places from his 8 starts, Warrior took his stakes total to R222 050.
Out of the Commands twice-winning mare Nona In Command, the Ridgemont Highlands-bred Warrior is a half brother to Jackson’s very smart stakes winner Pretty Young Thing.
He was 2014/15 SA Horse Of The Year Futura’s top lot when sold off the 2019 Cape Premier Yearling Sale and knocked down to Peter Doyle and Diane Nagle for R1,2 million.
OFFICIAL RESULT
| TRAINER | JOCKEY | DISTANCE | BETTING | |||
| 1ST | 9 WARRIOR | SJ Snaith | G van Niekerk | 25/2 | ||
| 2ND | 3 RASCALLION | VH Marshall | A Marcus | 0.50 | 0.50 | 9/2 |
| 3RD | 1 KOMMETDIEDING | H Crawford/M Rix | G Lerena | 0.75 | 1.25 | 87/100 |
| 4TH | 4 SOVEREIGN SPIRIT | C Bass-Robinson | A Domeyer | 0.50 | 1.75 | 20/1 |
| 5TH | 6 NATIVE TONGUE | SJ Snaith | R Fourie | 1.50 | 3.25 | 14/1 |
| TIME OF RACE: 1 min 38.68 sec | ||||||
| Tote
Fav |
1 KOMMETDIEDING | H Crawford/M Rix | G Lerena | 1.25 | 87/100 | |
