Daily News 2000 (Group 1)

THE Mike de Kock-trained Safe Passage swept to the head of the Durban July market by producing an impressive turn of foot to take the Daily News 2000 at Greyville last Saturday.

Bookmaker reaction was immediate and decisive with most layers slashing him from 12/1 to 4/1 to become the master trainer’s first winner of South Africa’s most famous race since Igugu 11 years ago.

The Daily News is the principal July warm-up for three year-olds - an age group that has won seven of the last 13 runnings of next month’s showpiece– but, surprisingly, only one Daily News winner (Legislate in 2014) has gone on to take the July in the same season in the last 12 years. And he only got it in the stewards’ room!

Last Saturday’s result might have been different had odds-on Cape Derby winner Pomp And Power not thrown away his chance by pulling his way to the front early on and then fighting for his head.

He had nothing left when Safe Passage swept past half a furlong out to score by just over two lengths under Muzi Yeni.

Safe Passage is now officially rated 2kg better than Pomp And Power but, according to the calculations of some experts, he may only have to give away half a kilo in the big one. Pomp And Power is 6/1 second favourite.

Good athlete

“Safe Passage was underdone for today,” said De Kock, winning his fifth Daily News. “He has a freakish heart rate and he is a really good athlete.

“When he got beaten last time (in the SA Classic) he was probably incubating a virus. He is a proper racehorse and he is going to improve on this.”

De Kock was also responsible for Aragosta who was a head further back third. “He probably should have been second but he hung right across the course,” said his trainer.

“I would love him to have gone to the front but he doesn’t have the speed that Safe Passage has,” he added.

The winner is by multiple champion sire Silvano out of a mare by the Danzig-sired Antonius Pius who made a name for himself in disastrous fashion at Ballydoyle in 2004.

He threw away the Poule d’Essai des Poulains by veering violently right and hitting the rails close home after looking sure to win. He also controversially failed to keep straight when only beaten half-a-length in that year’s Breeders’ Cup Mile.

Safe Passage is owned and bred by Gaynor Rupert’s Drakenstein Stud and was bought in at R500,000 (€11,954)

Woolavington 2000

The Woolavington is the fillies Group 1 equivalent of the Daily News and this also went to a Drakenstein homebred with Grant van Niekerk moving up smoothly on Silver Darling in the straight to lead well over a furlong out and beat fellow 4/1 joint favourite Light Of The Moon in convincing style.

Silver Darling was the fifth Woolavington winner in nine years for Justin Snaith and initiated a notable Group 1 double for Silvano. She is out of a Jet Master mare.