MAHUBO : THE HYMN SINGER

NYS Lot 231 Highly Decorated (Captain Al - Spring Garland)
(Photo : Leigh Willson)

Emperors Palace National Yearling Sale
TBA Sales Complex, Germiston, South Africa
27 - 29 April 2012

Any Stakes victory against international competition in a foreign country is a story worth telling, but this one happened at Aqueduct in New York, and there’s no pushover Stakes race in the Big Apple.

Mahubo (which means “hymns” in Zulu) was chalking up his 5^th career victory in the Three Coins Up Stakes (Listed) over 1 1/16^th mile at the fabled race track, claiming his first bold Black type after placing third as a maiden in a juvenile Group Three some years back. He was a little fellow, afflicted as a weanling with a viral setback which left him and another accomplished youngster, stripped of all recognisable condition. He recovered though, almost miraculously, in time for the National Sale, and turned up there a smart but little fellow with more than a bit of character. In the end, nobody wanted him though, and he was brought home and prepared for the Emperors Palace Ready To Run. By November, he’d told us he had the makings of a racehorse, and he fell to a R900,000 bid by Herman Brown Jnr on behalf of the internationally renowned Dr. Jim Hay and his wife, Fitri, of Cape Blanco, Fame And Glory and Traffic Guard fame.

Mahubo gave glimpses of his talent again at three with a classy fourth in the Emperors Palace Ready To Run Cup, South Africa’s third richest horserace, before setting off for Dubai, where he was once again victorious at their Racing Carnival. We’d lost trace of him since, until Saturday morning, when we received news courtesy of the TDN of his courageous effort in New York. His big win is a tribute to the enterprise of Jim Hay, who sent him Stateside to the yard of Kiaran McLaughlin after his stint in the desert, and gave him the chance to be what he’d been bred to be.

Mahubo’s story is quite extraordinary, given where his mom came from. Garden Verse arrived at Summerhill with a broken hip and no race record, and was put out to run with the cows, when she first came home. Today, she could keep an accountant busy for days, totting up the millions her offspring have generated at the sales and the races. One of them, Imbongi (the “praise-singer” in Zulu) was an international globe-trotter with a Voyager Platinum card. Besides being the top South African miler of his generation, he chalked up Graded Stakes victories in Dubai and the United Kingdom via Hong Kong, and was the earnings victor ludorum at the 2010 Dubai Racing Carnival. In all, he raked in some R8million in earnings, not bad for another unwanted urchin of the sales ring, who was eventually sold to Ronnie Napier and Michael Fleischer following a private gallop at the foot of the farm on a Saturday morning. Between them, Mahubo and Imbongi have an illustrious sister, Spring Garland, a multiple Group winner for Gary Alexander, whose victories included the prestigious Gerald Rosenberg Stakes (Gr.2,) one of the best weight-for-age races for fillies in South Africa.

A nice touch all of this, some might say, but Summerhill is somehow a farm before it’s a business, only as good as its current batch of runners, and what it puts back into the land and its people. Spring Garland’s first foal is a stand-out representative by Captain Al, in this year’s Summerhill National Yearling Sales draft.

Enquiries :
Tarryn Liebenberg 27 (0) 83 787 1982
or email tarryn@summerhill.co.za
www.summerhill.co.za

GALILEO GLUT

Dr Jim Hay and Fitri Hay
(Photo : Summerhill Archives)

…we’ve attracted a bit of “flak”…

We’ve been sounding like a stuck record for some years now, and we’ve attracted a bit of “flak” for our assertions that Galileo might be as good, and maybe better than his own remarkable sire, Sadler’s Wells, but events at the weekend have only served to reinforce this view. For the record, Galileo is already head and shoulders ahead of his nearest pursuer with some 8 Group One winners this season (against the 3 of his closest pursuer, Montjeu), and on Saturday he showed his versatility with a Grade One double at Arlington Park in the United States.

In the older brigade, Cape Blanco gave one of America’s leading grass horses, Gio Ponti (Tale Of The Cat) a 2,5 length beating for Summerhill clients Jim and Fitri Hay, among the usual crew at Coolmore, while Treasure Beach, the Irish Derby hero of this year, took the three-year-old event, the Secretariat Stakes (Gr1) from the Aga Khan’s Ziyarid. Both Galileos were trained by the Irish phenomenon, Aidan O’Brien.

The third feature of the day, the Group 1 Beverley D. Stakes for fillies and mares, carried South African hopes in the form of the seven-year-old mare, River Jetez, who came on strongly from the rear to be beaten just a short head for the consolation 2^nd money, 2,5 lengths adrift of the triple Group One winner, Stacelita, a European-bred daughter of the German-based stallion Monsun, a storied sire in his own right.

For the record, Summerhill’s been quietly accumulating daughters of Galileo for its broodmare contingent, and there are five on the farm as we write. Of course, it’s well known that we let the “Legend”, Igugu go, but as Zulu farmers dependant only on horses for a living, that was a matter of economic good sense!

NORTHERN HEMISPHERE SIRES
(By Group 1 Stakes Winners YTD)

Sire	G1 Stakes Winners
GALILEO (IRE)	8
MONTJEU (IRE)	3
DANEHILL DANCER (IRE)	2
DEEP IMPACT (JPN)	2
DUBAWI (IRE)	2
DYNAFORMER (USA)	2

CAPE BLANCO SWOOPS TO ARLINGTON MILLION VICTORY

Click above to watch Cape Blanco winning the Arlington Million (G1)…
(Image : ESPN - Footage : Arlington)

ARLINGTON MILLION STAKES (Grade 1)
Arlington Park, Turf, 2000m
13 August 2011

It was a great day for the Irish Saturday at Arlington Park, particularly if you were an Aidan O’Brien-trained Irish Derby-winning son of Galileo (Ire). First 2011 Derby winner Treasure Beach (GB) (Galileo) won the GI Secretariat Stakes and then, an hour or so later, 2010 Classic winner Cape Blanco (Ire) (Galileo) swept to a 2 1/2-length victory in the GI Arlington Million Stakes. Cape Blanco, favored at 2-1, settled in a stalking fourth as Mission Approved (With Approval) took the field along through pedestrian fractions over the rain-soakened Arlington turf course. The Irish raider was asked for run turning for home, made a bold move to put his head in front in upper stretch and surged clear. Gio Ponti (Tale of the Cat) closed late for second, matching his finish in last year’s Million. “He’s a good tough horse and he’s brilliantly trained,” jockey Jamie Spencer said of the winner. “All I did was was do the steering. Aidan gave me my instructions and I rode accordingly.”

Cape Blanco, a two-time group winner during his undefeated juvenile campaign, parlayed a win in last year’s G1 Irish Derby into a strong runner-up effort behind Harbinger in the G1 King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes before storming home by 5 1/2 lengths in the G1 Irish Champion Stakes. This term, the chestnut colt took to the synthetics for a fourth-place effort in the G1 Dubai World Cup in March and was fourth again in the G1 Prix Ganay at Longchamp in April. He set sail for America after a sixth-place effort in the June 14 G1 Queen Anne Stakes and made a quick impact on these shores, defeating Gio Ponti by 2 1/4 lengths in the July 9 G1 Man O’War Stakes at Belmont Park. “I’m very pleased just to be able to ride the horse,” Spencer continued. “There are very few horses that have the will to win like he has. The more you ask from him, the more you get from him. He had loads left in the end.”

Cape Blanco won the Irish Derby and Irish Champion Stakes last term for owners Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier and Michael Tabor. Dubai socialite Fitri Hay joined the ownership group in March when she purchased a significant interest in the colt. Hay and her husband, Jim, own the UAE-based holding company JMH Group.

Extract from Thoroughbred Daily News

A PLAY WITHOUT PUNCH

River Jetez
(Photo : Stable Life)

THE BEVERLEY D AND THE ARLINGTON MILLION

Tonight marks the annual Equus Awards, a celebration of South Africa’s racing champions. One of our biggest winners, the world renowned trainer Mike de Kock, will be absent, away in Chicago for the running of the Beverly D. Stakes (Gr1), on the same card as the Arlington Million. Engaged for the de Kock stable is the evergreen mare, River Jetez, where the daughter of Jet Master is priced up as the 4-1 second favourite to Stacelita. There’s no knowing what shape a seven-year-old mare will be in, but if River Jetez is at her best, she’ll certainly frighten the likes of the favourite, and her other two principal opponents, Cheetah (9-2) and Fantasia (6-1).

In the Million field, the Aidan O’Brien-trained Cape Blanco (part owned by Summerhill clients, Jim and Fitri Hay) is the 9-5 chalk ahead of the outstanding American guard horse Gio Ponti. Riveting stuff, and two races right at the top of America’s best turf event.

FAME AND GLORY SECURES GOLD CUP FOR BALLYDOYLE

Click above to watch Fame and Glory winning the Gold Cup (Gr1)
(Image : Telegraph - Footage : Racing UK)

GOLD CUP (Group 1)
Royal Ascot, 4000m
16 June 2011

Royal Ascot witnessed one of the great gambles yesterday when Fame and Glory (GB) (Montjeu) gave a passable impression of Yeats (Ire) to annex a fifth G1 Gold Cup in six years for Ballydoyle at a rain-soaked Royal Ascot.

Settled against the rail early under jockey Jamie Spencer in the spot the his illustrious predecessor used to enjoy in his four forays here, the bay was lolling off the moderate pace which was upped a notch after a mile by the veteran Geordieland (Fr) (Johann Quatz). Still cruising with a half mile remaining, Jamie Spencer waited for racing room to appear on his outside, and asked Fame and Glory to go through the gears at the top of the stretch. The confidence in his 11-8 favoritism proved infectious and the bay was carried by the wave of the crowd’s will as he swooped to the lead approaching the final furlong. Rolling by Duncan (GB) (Dalakhani), he received a smack with the whip there and a few after as Opinion Poll (IRE) (Halling) arrived and kept grinding way in the final yards. Godolphin had overturned So You Think (NZ) on Wednesday and it looked momentarily as if a case of de ja vu was about to strike with Opinion Poll coming out wide. But the Derrick Smith silks stayed ahead this time and, at the line, it was three lengths back to the royal blue.

“We didn’t go very fast early and I was delighted when I saw Geordieland go round the field and inject some pace,” Spencer said. “He wasn’t keen, but because he has so much class and is used to going a different pace he wanted that to make it more comfortable for him. It was a very easy, push-button ride and I’m just privileged to be allowed to ride him. Everyone was doubting him for the last few weeks, but we never had any doubts as those first two races were just to bring him along. It’s a great training performance.”

“Very few mile-and-a-quarter Group 1 winners get to run in a Gold Cup, but class makes them stay,” Aidan O’Brien said of the 5-year-old, who capped a successful venture for Dr Jim and Fitri Hay into joint-ownership with Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier and Michael Tabor. “He’s been a Group 1 winner every year since he was a 2-year-old, and we never knew until we tried, but we believed he would definitely get two miles. We are privileged to have him and Jamie was very confident and gave him an unbelievable ride.”

Another tilt at the October 2 G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is on the cards for Fame and Glory after his luckless runs in that Longchamp showpiece in 2009 and 2010. “The plan after today was to give him a break and train him for the Arc again, with a run beforehand,” O’Brien added.

GOLD CUP (Gr1)
Final Result

#	Horse	Sire	Jockey	Trainer
1	FAME AND GLORY (GB)	Montjeu	J Spencer	Aidan O’Brien
2	OPINION POLL (IRE)	Halling	M Barzalona	Mahmood Al Zarooni
3	BRIGANTIN (USA)	Cozzene	PC Boudat	Andre Fabre
4	MANIGHAR (FR)	Linamix	K Fallon	Luca Cumani
5	ASKAR TAU (FR)	Montjeu	G Baker	Marcus Tregoning
6	DUNCAN (GB)	Dalakhani	W Buick	John Gosden
7	KASBAH BLISS (FR)	Kahyasi	T Thulliez	Francois Doumen
8	AAIM TO PROSPER (IRE)	Val Royal	R Moore	Brian Meehan
9	MOTRICE (GB)	Motivator	S Sanders	Sir Mark Prescott Bt
10	BLUE BAJAN (IRE)	Montjeu	D Tudhope	David O’Meara
11	THE BETCHWORTH KID (GB)	Tobougg	H Turner	Alan King
12	FICTIONAL ACCOUNT (IRE)	Stravinsky	F Berry	Vincent Ward
13	HOLBERG (UAE)	Halling	F Dettori	Saeed bin Suroor
14	TASTAHIL (IRE)	Singspiel	R Hills	Barry Hills
15	GEORDIELAND (IRE)	Johann Quatz	R Hughes	Jamie Osborne

Extract from Thoroughbred Daily News