Dancewiththedevil Retired

The curtain has come down on the racing career of champion mare Dancewiththedevil, reports tabnews.co.za.

Owner-breeder St John Gray, who trained the daughter of Modus Vivendi to nine wins in a star-studded South African campaign, has confirmed the mare’s retirement in England: “The rains we’ve been waiting for have sadly come too late for her.”

Five times a Grade 1 winner and the 2011 Equus champion older female, she proved herself the country’s finest female “miler”, with her best efforts including a breathtaking last-to-first score in the first of two HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes victories and thrashing a star-studded field by over five lengths.

She also defied those who doubted her ability to win beyond 1600m by storming home to claim the 2011 Sansui Summer Cup, having turned for home in her customary last position. On that occasion, she soundly defeated Ilsanpietro, previous Summer Cup winner Rudra and current international star The Apache.

Sent to Britain in 2012, Dancewiththedevil managed just one start for Newmarket trainer Roger Varian, an unplaced effort in this year’s Gr 3 Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot, which was also her first outing in 14 months.

Although nothing is as yet cast in stone, Gray is considering several options for his champion: “I’ve had inquiries from some interested parties. If I don’t sell her, I would love to send her to a high-profile stallion such as Galileo.”

KZN’s Horse Of The Year Dancewiththedevil retires with earnings exceeding R3,9 million.

– Extract tabnews.co.za