One Stripe keeps earning his spurs on Guineas day

CAPE TOWN - Odds-on favourite One Stripe made his bid for glory up the outside rail, accelerating past Eight On Eighteen and Great Plains to win the 2 million rand (S$151,000) Group 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas (1,600m) at Kenilworth on Dec 14.

The victor is a son of new stallion sensation, One World out of the Silvano mare Silver Stripe, and is, fittingly, trained by Vaughan Marshall, who also handled the Group 1-winning sire with aplomb. The three-year-old colt was bred at Drakenstein Stud.

The early pace was torrid with All Our For Six and O’Tenikwa cutting the breeze, tracked by Heather’s Boy. One Stripe was settled midfield, eventually turning into the 600m stretch in seventh place.

While Snaith Racing entries Eight On Eighteen and Great Plains were moving through strongly down the inside as the pace horses collapsed, Gavin Lerena angled One Stripe across the width of the course.

One Stripe’s power of acceleration from the 400m again proved the difference between winning and losing as he triumphed by a length.

It was his fifth win from seven starts, having only lost on debut and then when running an exceptional race at the weights in second behind year older rival, Snow Pilot, who won the 2023 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas.

“He will keep improving and his acceleration is fantastic,” declared a jubilant Lerena afterwards.

For Marshall, who has a fabulous record in this race with six victories over the years, it was another hugely satisfying result in a prestigious race with a century-old tradition.

As for the placed horses, jockey Richard Fourie feels that Eight On Eighteen is a potential Cape Derby middle distance-type galloper who could not quite match One Stripe’s turn of foot over this trip.

“I knew that my horse is a Classic type and could not go with One Stripe who was really on it today,” said Fourie.

“If One Stripe ran straight, he would have beaten us by further.”

Great Plains’ rider Grant van Niekerk praised the smart grey for the way he tried to dart through down the inner.

“It was a fine run, but the winner was just way too good,” he said.

The fourth-placed 80-1 shot O’Tenikwa, who was ridden by Corne Orffer for Andre Nel, also emerged with the credit of being the only pace-presser to still be around at the finish.

In time, Nel envisages a KZN Winter campaign for his charge, who could relish races at Hollywoodbets Greyville, given his assertive running style.

Speaking of running styles, they do not come more assertive than The Futurist’s take-no-prisoners forcing tactics.

The rank outsider has stunned punters before when given too much leeway on the lead, and he repeated the treatment at $196 odds to burgle the Group 3 Ridgemont Peninsula Handicap (1,800m).

His form is erratic, but he is a hard horse to reel in when in the mood and settling into a good rhythm untroubled by any pace pressure.

“He either wins or comes last,” summed up his surprised owner Pete Carolin.

Trucked down a week ago from Johannesburg, Crawford Racing’s revived front runner put a couple of terrible runs behind him to go all the way for the upset.

Otto Luyken, Infrared and the slow-starting Future Swing completed the order of finish.

They came close in the end, but arrived too late to pass The Futurist, well piloted by Anthony Andrews.

Rainbow Lorikeet converted an alert start and a smooth stalking trip to win the Group 3 Splashout Victress Stakes (1,800m).

The Candice Bass-Robinson-trained galloper had to run down Knockout, who made a strong move to hit the front with 200m to go. Under Aldo Domeyer’s urgings, the daughter of Querari out of Nightingale finished best (23.1 seconds in the final 400m) to record her fifth career victory from 16 starts.

The short-priced favourite Saartjie (Orffer) was caught out too far behind a slow early pace and clocked in last in the five-runner field, albeit just 1.65 lengths off the winner. 4RACING