Daily News 2000 (Grade 1)

EIGHT On Eighteen, already the winner of the Met and the Cape Derby this season, was slashed from 4/1 to 5/2 favourite for the Durban July after making short work of his five opponents in the Daily News 2000 at Greyville last Saturday.

But the son of Lancaster Bomber has yet to be confirmed a runner in South Africa’s most famous race which is a handicap - and Justin Snaith is seemingly going to hold fire for a bit longer.

“We have had a lot of horses go wrong in the July,” he related. “When the stalls open the jockeys completely lost their heads – and their brains! There is so much at play in a race like that and we have got to think of Eight On Eighteen’s well-being.

“It’s a decision that will be made a little bit later but, make no mistake, it would be very hard not to go for a race like that. The frightening thing is that I know how much is still in the tank!”

Snaith, who would be bidding for his sixth Durban July win, is having one of the best seasons of his training life and he started this week with 203 winners and prize money of R25.4 million (€1.25 million), more than twice that of his nearest rival. Eight On Eighteen, who started at 5/2 on to beat his five rivals (three of them also trained by Snaith), was unleashed by Richard Fourie halfway up the straight and was subjected to nothing more serious than hands and heels to beat Mike de Kock’s Spumante Dolce by the best part of four lengths.

Impressed

“He needed the run which is great news,” reported an impressed Fourie. “He quickened up nicely and I didn’t have to do too much.” Unlike last season when he smashed the record for number of winners with a total of 378, almost twice that of his nearest rival, the champion is facing fierce competition from Gavin Lerena and Craig Zackey. He started the week on 215, a lead of only two over Lerena while Zackey was just four further back.

Eight On Eighteen (the name comes from a golfer’s disastrous final hole) is by Lancaster Bomber out of a Captain Al mare and was bred by Gaynor Rupert’s Drakenstein Stud.

The colt is owned by Nick Jonsson, in partnership with Gaynor’s businessman husband Johann Rupert who was one of those chosen by President Ramaposa to support him when meeting Donald Trump in controversial circumstances in the White House recently.

The 10-furlong Tote Woolavington 2000, a Grade 1 until demoted to Grade 2 this year, also went to Snaith with Little Suzie well handled by Sean Veale.

The winner, backed from 16/1 to 13/2, is by the Drakenstein stallion Trippi and is also a Gaynor Rupert homebred. Interestingly the winner is out of a mare by the Irish-bred Street Cry.

Forced retirement

Sadly Piere Strydom, 59 next Friday and temporarily out of action, is voicing concerns that he may soon be forced into retirement as the premiums on his compulsory insurance cover are increasing to impractical proportions.

But South African racing’s other golden oldie, Andrew Fortune, is busy making a comeback at the age of 58!