Buddy Maroun’s speed brigade just seems to keep rolling and even a 62kg burden might not be enough to prevent All Will Be Well taking a turn in the winner’s enclosure in Saturday’s Turffontein feature, the R125000 CT Brand Handicap over 1000m.
The Badger Land gelding rounded off his seventh year with a gutsy win his sixteenth! over top sprinter Clifton King in the R250000 Mercury Sprint at Clairwood in KwaZulu-Natal in July and has every chance of making his debut as an eight-year-old a winning one.
The engagement of champion jockey Piere Strydom will aid All Will Be Well’s cause, but Striker could find his main challenge in a regular rider for the Maroun stable, Lisa Prestwood.
Prestwood is on the Jannie Breedt-trained Settler City, a four-year-old with whom she seems to have struck up a good partnership, having won two of their three outings and placing in the other.
This son of Broad Reach has recently started to fulfil the promise he showed as a two-year-old and receives a solid 8kg from All Will Be Well.
The speedy Ramblin Jac Eliot seems to be at his best over this distance. He has had excuses in some of his recent runs and was just a head behind Settler City at Gosforth Park in July. He is a significant 2kg better off at the weights and has a chance.
Geoff Woodruff’s Rodoille was a shock grade one winner in March in the R500000 Computaform Sprint but did not produce that form in two subsequent starts over 1200m.
In spite of his pedigree he seems to do best over the shorter sprint, though, and this stable is never one to discount lightly.
The same could be said about bottom weight Ring On Time from the David Ferraris yard. The six-year-old gets a whopping 12kg from All Will Be Well and has not been too far back recently.
The Terry Lowe stable has been doing well too, and My Quest cannot be ruled out.
The four-year-old has not been out of the first two in his last seven runs and now seems to be progressing after looking like an eternal bridesmaid earlier in his career.
Fov’s Favourite, another Maroun runner, carries top weight of 63,5kg and seems to have too much to do.
In the work riders’ novice plate (race 2) J Mlangeni could follow up on his win last week aboard Bold Heart by steering Charles Laird’s Hinterland to victory.
This one has shown blistering pace in far stronger company than he meets here and it seems he needs only to be pointed in the right direction.
In the third Robbie Sage’s Kilsheelan seems to be improving rapidly and could go one better than his short-head defeat last time.
Sage also seems to have a good chance in the ninth with Scenic Drive, inexplicably disappointing last time out.
Michael Azzie’s Out Of Bounds scored an easy win at short odds on her debut and looks set to follow up in the fourth.
Kenilworth best bets: Hail Who (race 2); Short Pants (race 3); Hazy Moon (race 4) Clairwood best bets: Geared Up (race 3); Keep The Peace (race 5); Mount Stewart (race 7); Dance All Day (race 8)