The All Stars label on Saturday’s Champions Cup meeting at Clairwood Racecourse in Durban lived up to its name with a feast of superb racing and nail-biting finishes as the country’s top thoroughbreds fought it out for honours in the final graded racemeeting of the South African racing season.

Winning three feature events and finishing second and third in the other two at the meeting, trainer Geoff Woodruff gave a brilliant display of why he is the country’s champion trainer with his runners looking immaculate as always and performing at the top of their ability.

His tally for the day comprised the R200 000 Gold Circle Derby with Superwood, the R200 000 Thekwini Fillies Stakes with Promisefrommyheart and the Premier’s Champion Stakes with Ice Cube. One that he failed to bag and where his runner was desperately unlucky, was the day’s top event, the R500 000, Grade 1 Champion’s Cup where the filly Special Parade was touched off in a driving finish by Mike Bass’s Shalford gelding, African Lion.

Not even the objection against African Lion by newly-crowned champion jockey, Anthony Delpech, could get the decision for the Woodruff yard which had to settle for second place again behind a Western Cape runner as had been the case in the Vodacom Durban July where Yard-Arm was beaten home by Dean Kannemeyer’s Dynasty.

But three feature race wins in one day is an outstanding feat for any stable and with a winning strike rate in excess of 20% for the entire 12 months of the season, and total stakes won in the region of R12-million, Geoff Woodruff and his team can be well proud of their achievement.

For trainer Mike Bass the win in the Champions Cup was true reward for hard work and perseverance during the winter season with African Lion running a stunning race under Anton Marcus. African Lion and Special Parade came together to fight out the finish, pulling five lengths clear of the balance of the field and the result in the balance right up to the line where African Lion got it by a short head.

Anthony Delpech, stand-in rider for Weichong Mawing who had been stood down not feeling well, rode a great race on Special Parade and lodged an objection against African Lion on the grounds of interference in the latter stages. The objection was overruled.

The winning time for this race was a new course record of 117,32secs but a tail wind up the main straight might have assisted African Lion in establishing it.

The meeting showed that South Africa has some exciting young horses coming through the ranks, particularly the filly Icy Air who won the Gold Circle Oaks for Gary Alexander and Geoff Woodruff’s Ice Cube, winner of the Premier’s Champion Stakes.

With Ipi Tombe gone and Dynasty and Yard-Arm destined to move overseas as well, Icy Air and Ice Cube could go a long way to filling their shoes, if not fully doing it. Icy Air and Ice Cube both gave their supporters a handful of grey hairs as they each just got up to win their races by long heads, Icy Air from Battle Maiden and Ice Cube from Hold The Fort.

Superwood showed his second to Hot Silk in the Eastern Cape Derby was no flash-in-the-pan when he beat Hot Silk comfortably in the Gold Circle Derby. He fought a courageous fight with Major Bluff, Reveille Boy and Golden Moment over the final 200 metres to win by a short head and show that he is going to be a major player in South African racing over the coming year.

The Elliodor filly, Promisefrommyheart, caused something of an upset when she won the Thekwini Fillies Stakes comfortably. The Argentinean-bred Costa Marfil was the stable elect and ran a great race for fourth place but Promisefrommyheart showed she will never be on offer at 40-1 again and will be a serious runner in her future races.

Jockey Robbie Hill rode both Superwood and Promisefrommyheart showing he is still one of the best riders in the country and Stuart Randolph did a sterling job as replacement rider for Mawing on Ice Cube.

Issued by:  Gill Simpkins
Communications Officer
Gold Circle (Pty) Ltd