He's earned his place at the top of the betting boards and Mike
Bass's four-year-old Jet Master gelding, Pocket Power, will
go to the start for Saturday's R2-million, Grade 1 J&B Met
leaner and meaner than when he stormed through to win the L'Ormarins
Queen's Plate.
Giving notice that he was a serious horse in the making when
he reeled off three features on the trot in the Cape during
the winter season, including the Winter Derby over 2 400m, Pocket
Power showed he was a versatile sort when placing in two 1 200m
sprints before going into the 1 600m L'Ormarins Queen's Plate.
"He was not fully fit for that race and I believe he needed
that run. But he has stripped down well and will be a fitter
horse for the extra distance of the Met," his conditioner,
Mike Bass, said yesterday (Wednesday).
"He ran a good race over the mile and having stripped
down he is doing very well."
Mike said it was not his policy to take his three-year-olds
to Durban for the Winter season and that is why pocket Power
and Hilgrove stayed in the Cape. He kept them at home and allowed
them to mature.
"You never saw Trademark or Bunter Barlow in Durban as
three-year-olds. I like to let them mature and take them up
as four-year-olds."
He has two other runners in the J&B Met, the Casey Tibbs
gelding Hilgrove and the five-year-old Moldel Man gelding, African
Appeal, and both are working very well.
"Hilgrove has never been asked to compete in any big races
but he has won his races well. He has matured and perhaps he
is now up there with some of the better horses. I think he will
improve in the future and will be a contender in the bigger
races."
African Appeal, who won the Cup Trial at Clairwood in June,
has always been a good campaigner in Grade 2 and Grade 3 races
but could be just off the top horses.
"But he is very well at the moment and Greg Cheyne who
will ride him on Saturday feels he has come on well since the
L'Ormarins Queen's Plate. He has been a little unlucky with
the draw in some of his races but he is drawn well at three
here.
"I don't know if he is as good over the 2 000m than he
is over 1 800m but he is well and I'm very happy with him."
The Bass stable looks set for a good day on Saturday and runs
the two fillies, Sun Classique and Zooming Zellie, in the R400
000, Grade 1 Fancourt Majorca Stakes over 1 600m.
Sun Classique has shown herself to be a special filly having
won the Avontuur Estate Fillies Guineas in December before being
a fast-finishing second to end-to-end winner Badger's Gift in
the TBA Paddock Stakes.
But once again she is drawn wide and will have to come from
a long way back in Saturday's race as she is not a filly that
can be bustled early.
"The pace will be the vital factor. If the pace is good
then she will be able to come from off them as she did in the
Guineas and the Paddock Stakes. Unfortunately in the latter,
Badger's Gift just caught her out.
"If there is no pace on then it will be hard for her to
win."
Zooking Zellie is an American-bred filly who the stable felt
at first was a smart sort. But she had not lived up to expectations
and Karl Neisius who rode her in the TBA Paddock Stakes was
a little disappointed in her run.
"But Karl said he would like to ride her again and give
her another chance. There is a lot of speed in her pedigree
and I will only find out how good she is in Saturday's race."