Just nine entries for Queen’s Plate

Only nine names were on the list when first entries for the country’s most prestigious mile race, worth R1 million, were revealed on Monday. They are names to stir the pulse, though.

Top-rated Rainbow Bridge, third in the 2020 Queen’s Plate and a triple Grade 1 winner, is there; as is his younger half-brother and Eric Sands stablemate Golden Ducat, who has two Grade 1s to his name.

Queen’s Plate 2019 victor and dual Durban July champ Do It Again is in the mix, along with this year’s July hero Belgarion, who won the recent Green Point Stakes impressively and is also from the powerful Justin Snaith yard.

That quartet have very seldom been out of the placings in their glittering careers, so rivals are likely to be contemplating a race for “best of the rest” status.

However, champion trainer Sean Tarry is not one to shirk any challenge and has entered his doughty campaigner Cirillo, who has been something of a “bridesmaid” in major races – often due to unlucky breaks. If things go this guy’s way, he could conceivably spoil the party for his fancied opponents.

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Another entry that will attract some attention is Snaith’s third string, three-year-old Jet Dark, who was an eye-catching fourth in the recent Cape Guineas. As a callow youth among elders, he gets a 5kg advantage under the weight-for-age conditions – which might be what an improver needs to spring a surprise.

The only top-level South African middle-distance horses missing from the early Queen’s Plate entries are last year’s winner Vardy, who is convalescing after injury, and super filly Summer Pudding.

The latter appears among the first entries for the other Grade 1 event on the Queen’s Plate card, the Paddock Stakes over 1800m.i

Unbeaten in her nine starts, Summer Pudding is better suited to the extra ground of this famous old test of fillies and mares. Having seen off some vaunted males in the Summer Cup in late November, Paul Peter’s charge reverts to her own gender and will be at cramped odds to post 10 wins in a row.

Speaking of race distance, it is interesting to see both Golden Ducat and Do It Again among the early entries for another supporting feature race on Queen’s Plate day, the Grade 2 Premier Trophy over 1800m.

Both horses find the 1600m of the main event a tad sharp at this stage of their lives and their trainers might – just might – opt for the longer trip and slightly lesser competition. The argument against such a move is the disparity in prize money: R200,000 versus R1 million.

Early betting

Queen’s Plate:

12-5 Belgarion
7-2 Rainbow Bridge
9-2 Golden Ducat
11-2 Do It Again
13-2 Cirillo
14-1 Silver Operator
16-1 Jet Dark
20-1 Super Silvano
22-1 Hudoo Magic

Paddock Stakes:

13-10 Summer Pudding
4-1 Queen Supreme
11-2 Clouds Unfold
10-1 Silvano’s Pride
16-1 and upwards the others

L’ORMARINS QUEEN’S PLATE, Grade 1, R1 million, 1600m

(Weight for age: 3 years – 5.0kgs; 4 years – 0.0kgs)

5 RAINBOW BRIDGE    (6G) 60.0 134 Eric Sands

8 DO IT AGAIN        (6G) 60.0 133 Justin Snaith

7 BELGARION          (5G) 60.0 130 Justin Snaith

3 GOLDEN DUCAT       (4G) 60.0 128 Eric Sands

4 CIRILLO            (5H) 60.0 126 Sean Tarry

2 HUDOO MAGIC (AUS)  (5G) 60.0 110 Brett Crawford

9 SILVER OPERATOR    (4C) 60.0 109 Vaughan Marshall

6 SUPER SILVANO      (4C) 60.0 104 Brett Crawford

1 JET DARK           (3C) 55.0 109 Justin Snaith

CARTIER PADDOCK STAKES, Grade 1, R500,000, 1800m

(Fillies & Mares at Weight For Age; WFA: 3 years – 6.0kgs, 4years – 0.5kgs)

3 QUEEN SUPREME (IRE) (5M) 60.0 126   Mike de Kock

2 CLOUDS UNFOLD      (5M) 60.0 124   Candice Bass-Robinson

8 SILVANO’S PRIDE    (5M) 60.0 118   Justin Snaith

7 MIYABI GOLD        (6M) 60.0 113   Justin Snaith

1 SLEEPING SINGLE (5M) 60.0 107   Justin Snaith

12 SUMMER PUDDING     (4F) 59.5 129   Paul Peter

9 DRIVING MISS DAISY (4F) 59.5 115 B Eric Sands

11 KELPIE             (4F) 59.5 107   Brett Crawford

5 HEART STWINGS      (4F) 59.5 106   Paul Peter

13 SING OUT LOUD      (4F) 59.5 105   Brett Crawford

6 PRINCESS CALLA     (3F) 54.0 111   Adam Marcus

10 CHAT CHING         (3F) 54.0 108   Candice Bass-Robinson

4 DAZZLING SUN       (3F) 54.0 107   Justin Snaith

PREMIER TROPHY, Grade 2, R200,000, 1800m

(Open; WFA: 3 years – 6.0kgs, 4 years – 0.5kgs)

16 DO IT AGAIN        (6G) 60.0 133   Justin Snaith

11 GOLDEN DUCAT       (4G) 59.5 128   Eric Sands

6 NEXUS              (5G) 59.0 117   Justin Snaith

20 HUDOO MAGIC (AUS)  (5G) 59.0 110   Brett Crawford

2 AFRICAN NIGHT SKY  (7G) 58.0 120   Justin Snaith

10 DOUBLEMINT         (6G) 58.0 118   Justin Snaith

14 ATYAAB (AUS)       (5G) 58.0 115   Zietsman Oosthuize

19 KAMPALA CAMPARI    (7G) 58.0 108   Andre Nel

12 MAJESTIC MOZART    (5G) 58.0 107   Candice Bass-Robin

13 SOVEREIGN SPIRIT   (5G) 58.0 106 B Candice Bass-Robin

9 LOVE HAPPENS       (6G) 58.0 102   Justin Snaith

3 VIKRAM             (5G) 58.0 101 B Andre Nel

22 SILVER OPERATOR    (4C) 57.5 109   Vaughan Marshall

17 SACHDEV            (4G) 57.5 107   Justin Snaith

5 SUPER SILVANO      (4C) 57.5 104   Brett Crawford

7 SEVENTH GEAR       (4G) 57.5 103   Dean Kannemeyer

4 AZORES             (4G) 57.5 101   Dean Kannemeyer

1 KELPIE             (4F) 55.0 107   Brett Crawford

8 HEART STWINGS      (4F) 55.0 106   Paul Peter

21 SING OUT LOUD      (4F) 55.0 105   Brett Crawford

18 RED LARK           (3G) 52.0 103   Andre Nel

15 NORTHERN SONG      (3C) 52.0  92   Glen Kotzen

CHAIRMAN’S CUP, Grade 3, R150,000, 2500m     

(Open; WFA: 3 years – 8.0kgs, 4years – 1.5kgs)

5 ATYAAB (AUS)       (5G) 59.5 115   Zietsman Oosthuize

8 CROME YELLOW       (6G) 56.5 108   Andre Nel

6 KAMPALA CAMPARI    (7G) 56.5 108   Andre Nel

12 MAJESTIC MOZART    (5G) 56.5 107   Candice Bass-Robinson

14 SEVENTH GEAR       (4G) 55.0 103   Dean Kannemeyer

4 SILVER HOST        (4G) 55.0 102   Justin Snaith

10 CAT DADDY          (5G) 55.0 100   Glen Kotzen

3 AZORES             (4G) 53.5 101   Dean Kannemeyer

13 RETRO EFFECT       (5G) 52.0  93 B Geoff Woodruff

7 SILVER DE LANGE    (7G) 52.0  93   Andre Nel

1 TROOP THE COLOUR   (6G) 52.0  92 B Peter D Wrensch

2 HOLY WARRIOR       (4G) 52.0  90 B Candice Bass-Robinson

9 SUDDEN STAR        (4C) 52.0  87   Michael Robinson

11 SAILING LIZARD     (5G) 52.0  80   Andre Nel

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