Racing on Good Friday was often frowned upon in days past, but it seems that it is no longer a point of debate and after the postponement of the Hollywoodbets Greyville racemeeting that was carded for this evening, Fairview is a standalone on the first day of the Easter long weekend.
The first is due off at 12h05 with the lucky last set for 16h45.
With the scratching of stablemate Hot Sauce, two Ridgemont bred daughters of five-time Gr1 winning stallion Canford Cliffs look set to dominate today’s Fairview headliner, the R175 000 East Cape Nursery.
Canford Cliffs has had 5 winners from 9 juvenile starters this season, with an average earnings per runner of R231 655 that outstrips any of his opponents on the 2yo Sires log. He could well add to those numbers on Friday.
Multiple champion trainer Alan Greeff saddles four of the eight runners, including the Canford Cliffs duo headed by the undefeated Direct Hit, who comes in off a two month break after travelling to the Cape to achieve a sensational victory in the R1 million SplashOut Gr3 Cape Of Good Hope Nursery.
After a runaway win at home at short odds on debut, Direct Hit came out firing on all cylinders to prove that she is going places and scored in a race won last year by this season’s champion sophomore, One Stripe.
One imagines that Gr1 Allan Robertson Championship at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on 31 May could well be in the plans, but for now jockey choice and form suggest she could make it three on the trot on Friday.
Instaworthy is the most experienced of the Canford Cliffs trio and may have just needed it when well beaten into third behind stablemate Anotherdanceforme in the East Cape Nursery last time.
Mhlabeni from the Duncan McKenzie stable takes his place in Race 2.
He has shown good signs of a form return in his last two starts. He set the pace over 1600m last time but found one too good in the form of Bingwa.
He won his only attempt over this course and distance.
The son of Elusive Fort is likely to get his own way in front from barrier two and he may be hard to peg back.