A Very Proudly KZN Weekend's Racing!

IMG_2731-annapavlova — Anna Pavlova enters the Summerhill Summer Ready To Run Sales ring in February last year, where she sold for R40 000. She is now a four time winner including the Gr3 Three Troikas Stakes. The Summerhill Summer Ready To Run Sale takes place 21 February. Image: Candiese Marnewick

KZN enjoyed a great weekend at the races from Greyville, Turffontein to Kenilworth, with St Petersburg filly Anna Pavlova giving our National Champion Breeders another Gr3 win in the Three Troikas Stakes yesterday, amongst their three wins for the day on the card at Turffontein.

Our province of KZN produces less than 1100 of 5000 foals nationally – based on those stats, our KZN horses won five races yesterday at Turffontein including a Gr3 and filling second and third too. Matador Man (Scott Bros) and Chilli Con Carne (Just As Well) placed in the Gr3 Tony Ruffel Stakes, whilst Rathmor’s Romany Prince finished third in the Wolf Power 1600 Listed. The Gr3 Three Troikas was a KZN affair with the first three places being Anna Pavlova, Visuality and Last Chirp.

Six of the eight races carded at Greyville just the night before were won by KZN Breeders – and it was a double for Bush Hill Stud sire King’s Chapel who had Cup King and Mr McSteamy to both win in a gutsy fashion, whilst Roski produced a five length maiden winner at Kenilworth yesterday.

Bruce Le Roux of Spring Valley produced a Var winner at Fairview on Friday for trainer Justin Snaith, whilst Yellow Star’s old soldier Placido, a top juvenile in his day, flew the flag for Lee Scribante and Alan Greef by winning the last race and collecting his seventh career win.

KK8A2895-cupking — A gutsy performance from Cup King in the centre (pink and black colours), fighting to the finish to make it a double for King’s Chapel at Greyville on Friday night. Image: Candiese Marnewick

Two of the races at Turffontein won by KZN horses were sired by the late Bankable, whilst Scott Bros had a son of The Sheik, Moss Gas, to win impressively. Mogok is making himself known as a broodmare sire – and he featured in this position with both Moss Gass and Gr3 placed Matador Man yesterday.

Roski Stud’s son of Just As Well set jaws moving at Kenilworth after he annhilated a very well-bred field of maidens by over five lengths, leading from the start. In just his second start for Greg Ennion, Zodiac Jack (who comes with a story as all the connections have the name Jack in common) races in the colours of Braam Van Huyssteen in partnership with Mr O Schoeman.

_MG_6859-kerry — Zodiac Jack and Kerry Jack spotted in the sales yard of Roski at the National Yearling Sale last year. Kerry bought Zodiac Jack for R100 000. He shattered his maiden in facile fashion yesterday at Kenilworth by over five lengths clear. Image: Candiese Marnewick

Zodiac Jack was selected and purchased by Kerry Jack (another common denominator!) and is a son of 10-time winning Kahal mare, Pisces Star. He is her first foal, and she has a stunning Oratorio colt on the ground this season at Roski Stud.

Roski also produced a winner last night at Greyville, with Tyron’s Jet flying to the Greyville winning post by a whisker for owner Leslie Logan. The AP Answer filly out of Just Smoke Em by The Sheik has now won twice and placed five times, only out of the money on three occasions to date. She has been placed on the BSA Shongweni Mixed Sale taking place on 22 February and looks to be a bright prospect at the sale.

Just As Well, a son of AP Indy out of a Gr1 Nureyev mare which is the same cross as Judpot, is a vastly underrated sire who has had limited support since the start of his stud career (and only had 16 registered runners in his first crop to race but produced two Black Types), but with a current winners to runners percentage of an admirable 31.1%, ignore his progeny at your peril at sales.

He produces an athletic horse with plenty of substance and good bone – his foals are strapping individuals with strong hindquarters and the correct frame to carry it all handsomely.

IMG_1502r — St Petersburg on show at Summerhill Stud Stallion Day in 2013. Image: Candiese Marnewick

Reverting back to Nureyev, Summerhill’s St Petersburg – a Gr1 producer in Australia and had plenty of success in New Zealand, Singapore and Australia, is the only son of Nureyev currently at stud in KZN.

Gr3 Three Troika’s Stakes winner Anna Pavlova is a perfect advert for the upcoming Summerhill Summer Ready To Run Sale taking place at Summerhill Stud on 21st February. She sold for only R40 000 off this very sale last year, a sale that has amongst its graduates the multiple Group winner and placed No Worries, Coby and Flyfirstclass.

Three year old Anna Pavlova has won four races (impressively three in a row) with five places from 10 starts for stakes of R395 150 – not a bad a return for a R40 000 purchase by owners Mesdames C Soal & M Soal.

The filly is out of the unraced Royal Applause imported Irish mare, Shatrang – who is out of a full-sister to ill-fated KZN champion sire, Kahal. As an aside, this dam line has also featured for KZN and Roski Stud with the likes of Gr1 placed Frosty Friday and Al Kateece, all progeny of a half-sister to Kahal who stood at Roski Stud and unfortunately died last year.

Anna Pavlova winning the Gr3 Three Troikas. Image: JC Photos

St Petersburg belongs to the immediate family of Two Year Old USA Champion sire Foolish Pleasure, Beldale Lustre, Valid Expecations and Little Expectations.A stallion that is easy on the eye and with an extraordinarily kind temperament, St Petersburg is a half-brother to Triple Gr1 winner in the USA, Jersey Girl, 8-time winner Partition as well as sire Bold Expectation in Australia.

A stallion that was previously not available to the breeding public before his move to Summerhill, he is the only son of Nureyev standing in KZN. He has produced winners (and Stakes Winners) in New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong.

From his first South African progeny to race, he produced Gr1 placed and multiple winner Blushing Peter and Australian Gr1 winner, Solzhenitsyn(NZ). As a racehorse he won Stakes and Group races from 1000m – 1200m, as well as a Gr1 performance in Australia’s time-honoured Lightning Stakes over 1000m and the Gr3 VRC Chivas Regal Stakes.

_MG_4808r — Noble Tune, the beautifully-bred son of Unbridled’s Song and a half-brother to Honor Code, will have his first yearlings offered for sale at the CTS March Yearling Sale at Durbanville. Image: Candiese Marnewick

We have a lot to be proud of from our small province that produces big results from small numbers and with a band of exciting young stallions, we are very positive about the future of breeding in KZN.

A recent comment after the National Yearling Sales inspections is that our yearlings being prepped for Nationals are on the same level of quality and size country wide, which is very encouraging indeed.

KZN stallions represented by their progeny will go on sale at the BSA Cape Yearling Sale taking place 16 March at Mistico, by stallions Just As Well, Kildonan, Golden Sword and Brave Tin Soldier.

This will be followed by the CTS March Yearling Sale at Durbanville racecourse on 18 and 19 March, where you will find the first yearlings by Noble Tune, The Apache and first crop runners Crusade and Eightfold Path.

Well done to all the winners concerned.