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After the running of the R1 500 000, Grade 1 Daily News 2000, at level weights, over 2000m at Greyville on Saturday, there are more questions than answers, with four three-year-olds crossing the line in a blanket finish.
Photo by Liesl King
The race is usually a very good pointer to the three-year-olds’ form going into the Grade 1 Vodacom Durban July, but this year’s result left pundits baffled.
Vercingetorix, trained by Mike De Kock, maintained his unbeaten record, getting his nose in front on the line, from 36/1 outsider No Worries and joint favourite Capetown Noir, with the distance between first and third being a mere 0.15L.
The Silvano colt made it a memorable double for his sire, after Bernard Fayd’Herbe steered the Geoff Woodruff trained three-year-old filly Do You Remember to victory in the fillies equivalent, the R750 000 Grade 1 Woolavington 2000 over 2000m, earlier on the card.
Stable companion Rock Cocktail(AUS) and Gavin Lerena were speedy away and led the field into the first bend with Abercrombie and Yorker in his wake. Capetown Noir was perfectly positioned on the rail in fourth, with Anthony Delpech on Vercingetorix alongside, shadowing his every move. As Rock Cocktail kicked for home, Capetown Noir appeared outpaced, losing ground as Delpech sent Vercingetorix after the long time leaders.
Vercingetorix claimed the lead at the 200m mark, but a flying No Worries under Brandon Lerena appeared on his outside, while Karl Neisius and Capetown Noir, having regained their second wind, loomed up the inside. Further out, Wylie Hall(AUS), who had raced four wide the entire way, also started to make up ground.
From the 100m mark it was a head-bobbing contest between Vercingetorix and Capetown Noir, before Vercingetorix finally got the nod on the line. In the last stride No Worries stuck his head in the mix, relegating Capetown Noir to third, with Wylie Hall under MJ Odendaal flying up to take fourth. The distances were 0.05L, 0.1L and 0.1L on a good track with a winning time of 121.33 seconds.
Photo by Liesl King
De Kock confirmed that Vercingetorix will now take his place in the R3.5 million, Grade 1 Vodacom Durban July(2200m) at Greyville on July 6, while Dean Kannemeyer is still undecided as to whether Capetown Noir will be in the starting line up. Vercingetorix by Silvano(GER) out of the National Assembly mare National Vixen, has now won four from four, taking his earnings to R1 410 000 for owner Al Adiyaat South Africa.
The colt made headlines as a yearling already when he was offered for sale by the Riverside grooms’ cooperative funded by the Department of Trade and Industry as part of a small business development scheme. Purchased for R200 000 as a weanling by the grooms, he was sold at the 2011 National Yearling Sale for R1.4 million to De Kock.