WHAT a week it was for the team at Drakenstein Stud, as they claimed both the mile classics at Turffontein in South Africa with homebreds, the three-year-old gelding Safe Passage leading a Silvano (Lomitas) one-two home in the Group 2 Gauteng Guineas for trainer Mike de Kock, while Rain In Holland (Duke Of Marmalade) was a clear winner of the Group 2 Gauteng Fillies Guineas, trained by Sean Tarry.

The only Group 1 winner in the field and the champion juvenile filly last season, Rain In Holland is one of seven winners at the highest level for the late Duke Of Marmalade (Danehill), five of which are fillies or mares. In winning this classic Rain In Holland beat, among others, the de Kock-trained hot favourite Desert Miracle. This race is the first leg of the South African Triple Tiara, the fillies’ equivalent of the Triple Crown, and was a first win at three for the Tarry stable star.