Soma star hunts hat-trick in Highveld headliner

Jack Milner

The excitement of the Hollywoodbets Durban July will have settled down by Sunday but there is still an exciting 10-race card for punters to enjoy.

The meeting on the Turffontein Standside track is headed up by the Grade 3 Sea Cottage Stakes which is the final leg of the Highveld Three-Year-Old Winter Challenge.

However, no runner is in line to collect the bonus for winning all three legs as Leg 1 was claimed by King Harald while Leg 2 went to Errol Flynn. However, we can, and in fact should, have a double winner as Joe Soma-trained Errol Flynn looks impossible to oppose in this 1800m event.

The manner in which he captured the Egoli Mile was remarkable as after a slow start he loped along at the back on the field early on but when jockey Keagan de Melo asked him to quicken he put the race to bed in a matter of strides, going on to beat Got The Feeling by 2.60 lengths.

This son of Master Of My Fate has always had loads of talent and has won four of his six starts, but he does have his quirks.

Nevertheless, he seems to be more settled since Soma opted to race him in blinkers and there is little doubt a top feature victory cannot be too far off.

His only run in over 1800m came in the Grade 1 TAB SA Classic at this course but he was found to be suffering from cardiac arrhythmia, which in essence is an irregular. That seems to have been sorted out and his two wins since then, both over 1600m, have been sensational.

This 1800m should not be a problem for him and he will be very hard to beat.

De Melo knows him well and he will be back in the irons once again

There looks to be another banker on the card in the form of The Equator who takes a mighty drop in class in Race 6, a Pinnacle Stakes also over 1800m.

This beautifully bred son of Galileo has been a bit of enigma but he has been racing against the best in the land. He changed trainers in April and had a decent outing for Stuart Pettigrew when 3.40-length fifth behind Aladdin’s Lamp in the Grade 3 Jubilee Stakes and now looks ready for a third victory in South Africa.

 

Jack Milner’s selections

Race 1: 8 Star Magnolia, 5 What Now My Love, 3 Irish Wilma, 1 Pennys Choice

Race 2: 1 Enflame, 7 Ethical, 3 Mo Ment, 6 Euphrates

Race 3: 4 Within Reach, 3 Secret Fate, 1 Queen Leila, 2 Impressive

Race 4: 5 Expert Witness, 3 Spirit Of Gabz, 8 Rafe’s Oracle, 9 Snowblade

Race 5: 7 Pole Position, 9 Spicy Plum, 1 Wish You Were Here, 8 Rumba Erupta

Race 6: 1 The Equator, 3 King’s Express, 2 Wild Intent, 4 Don’t Cry For Me

Race 7: 3 Errol Flynn, 2 Copper Eagle, 1 Chronicle King, 5 Got The Feeling

Race 8: 1 Taxi To The Moon, 2 Almond Sea, 4 African Pride, 7 Chapbook

Race 9: 7 Chestnut Bomber, 2 Dantonfromsandton, 3 Master Christmas, 6 Kensal Green

Race 10: 5 Sky Pilot, 2 Top Shelf Teddy, 8 Utsaah, 4 Harun Al Rashid

 

BEST BET

Race 7: 3 Errol Flynn

VALUE BET

Race 10: 5 Sky Pilot

BEST SWINGER

Race 7 2×3

 

BIPOT

R72

Leg 1: 1, 7

Leg 2: 1, 3, 4

Leg 3: 3, 5, 8

Leg 4: 1, 7, 8, 9

Leg 5: 1

Leg 6: 3

 

PLACE ACCUMULATOR

R108

Leg 1: 1, 3, 4

Leg 2: 3, 5

Leg 3: 1, 7, 9

Leg 4: 1

Leg 5: 3

Leg 6: 1, 2, 4

Leg 7: 2, 7

 

PICK 6

R720

Leg 1: 3, 6, 8, 9

Leg 2: 1, 4, 7, 8, 9

Leg 3: 1

Leg 4: 3

Leg 5: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7

Leg 6: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

 

JACKPOT 1

R30

Leg 1: 1, 4, 7, 8, 9

Leg 2: 1

Leg 3: 3

Leg 4: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7

 

JACKPOT 2

R144

Leg 1: 3

Leg 2: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7

Leg 3: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

Leg 4: 2, 3, 5, 8