The Grade 3 Betway Lebelo Sprint over 1000m heads up the Turffontein card on Saturday and the fairer sex could hold sway over their male counterparts.
This is a straight handicap so there is no sex allowance for fillies and mares, nevertheless, Alula’s Star and Flowerbomb look the runners to beat.
Alula’s Star is a six-time winner from 23 starts and has also run into the places on 11 other occasions. Two of those victories were in Grade 3 races and both were on the Turffontein Standside track over 1160m.
The one concern is that she has only managed one success over 1000m and that was in a Maiden Plate in her second start. But, with the exception of her last run where she faded late to finish unplaced behind Mrs Browning in the Grade 3 Carry On Alice Stakes, Alula’s Star has been in good form.
However, she can be forgiven for that start as it was her second run after a lengthy layoff and she may have gone a little flat. The five-year-old daughter of Red Ray is a lot better than that and in a weaker field this time, the Stuart Pettigrew-trained mare must be a lively contender.
Philasande Mxoli has ridden her in all but one of her starts and will be back in the irons once again.
Flowerbomb is also a decent performer and has won four of her 16 starts and placed in another eight races.
Ironically, she is in a similar situation to Alula’s Star in that she had an excellent comeback run after a layoff in a Listed race over 1000m but then also faded out in her next start which was also in the Carry On Alice Stakes.
She was bumped late which did little to help her chances but she did finish 1.50 lengths ahead of Alula’s Star and will be 2kg better off this time. Chase Maujean has ridden her seven times for two wins and three places and trainer Corne Spies has once again engaged him to take the ride on the four-year-old Erupt filly.
Rulership is in good form having won both his races since joining Tony Peter’s Joburg yard. In his favour as well is that all five of his victories have come over 1000m and in his 12 starts over the distance, he has placed in another five of those races.
Calvin Habib rode him in his last two races and will get the opportunity to guide the son of William Longsword to his first Graded race success.
Whatever the fate of Rulership, Peter and Habib should find themselves in the winner’s enclosure after the running of Race 6, the Non-Black Type Sophomore 1000 for three-year-olds over 1000m.
This daughter of Vercingetorix has won three of her four starts since moving up from the Western Cape and her lone defeat was by the narrowest of margins.
Clive Robinson
