Mission: Kommetdieding looks for third Grade 1 win in Champions Challenge

Kommetdieding heads up the final field for the R2-million TAB The Premier’s Champions Challenge over 2000m.

The Grade 1 race is the main event on Saturday’s Champions Day card on the Standside track at Turffontein.?

There are two Grade 1 races taking place at the meeting, the second being the Computaform Sprint over 1000m.????

There are also four Grade 2 events – the Heineken SA Nursery and 4Racing SA Fillies Nursery for Juveniles, the 4Racing Gerald Rosenberg Stakes for fillies and mares over 2000m and the Racing 240 Camelia Stakes for fillies and mares over 1160m – as well as the Grade 3 The Citizen Gold Bowl over 3200m.

The TAB The Champion’s Challenge is one of the “Big Four” races in the country and it looks all systems go for Kommetdieding to add the third of these to the two he has already won, the Durban July and Cape Town Met. The fourth is the Summer Cup.?

Kommetdieding, trained by the father and daughter team of Harold Crawford and Michelle Rix, is the best handicapped runner under the weight-for-age conditions and has a 3.5kg advantage over MK’s Pride.?

Paul Peter’s charge did finish in front of Kommetdieding in the Wilgerbosdrift HF Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes but that was over 1600m and has yet to prove he will see out 2000m.???

Peter also has Shangani and Astrix in the line-up.?

Puerto Manzano, who will see out the distance and will have Anton Marcus in the irons, finished second in the Horse Chestnut with Kommetdieding in third, but the champion was having his first race on the Highveld and will be a different proposition this time.?

Gavin Lerena will be back in the irons.

Sean Tarry has three runners – Zillzaal, Shango and Summer Cup winner Flying Carpet – Mike de Kock will be represented by Sparkling Water, while Johan Janse van Vuuren has Puerto Manzano and Second Base.??

The Computaform Sprint is always a thriller and 15 runners have accepted to take on this 1000m dash.??

Peter has a strong hand with six speedsters, the best of whom appear to be Master Archie and filly Big Burn.?

Brett Crawford has brought talented Real Gone Kid, a winner of six of his 11 races in the Western Cape, to the Highveld for this race while Mike and Adam Azzie send out Bohica, winner of the Grade 1 Cape Flying Championship at Kenilworth in January.??

Another highlight of the meeting comes up in Race 10, where the work riders will take on the jockeys in a Maiden Plate over 1160m.??

Bettors will also have the opportunity to bet into a massive Pick 6 pool. There is a Pick 6 carryover of R1-million which is likely to produce a pool of R5 million.?

?- Jack Milner

Final field for the R2-million TAB The Premier’s Champions Challenge (Grade 1) over 2000m?

1 - 3 KOMMETDIEDING (H/M Crawford/Rix) G Lerena 60.0 - 129

2 - 9 MK'S PRIDE (P A Peter) M Yeni 60.0 - 122

3 - 5 PUERTO MANZANO (J J van Vuuren) A Marcus 60.0 - 120

4 - 1 SECOND BASE (J J van Vuuren) K de Melo 60.0 - 118

5 - 8 ZILLZAAL (S G Tarry) R Fourie 60.0 - 117

6 - 2 FLYING CARPET (S G Tarry) C Habib 60.0 - 116

7 - 10 ASTRIX (P A Peter) J P v'd Merwe 60.0 - 112

8 - 6 JOHNNY HERO (T Zackey) D Schwarz 60.0 - 110

9 - 13 SHANGO (S G Tarry) L Mxothwa 60.0 - 109

10 - 12 SHANGANI (P A Peter) W Kennedy 60.0 - 108

11 - 4 SAVANNAH STORM (P P Vermeulen) M V'Rensburg 60.0 - 97

12 - 7 SPARKLING WATER (M F De Kock) S Khumalo 57.5 - 115

13 - 11 ZEUS (F P Habib) C Zackey 56.5 - 108

Same Trainer: (2,7,10) (3,4) (5,6,9)?

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Final field for the R1-million Computaform Sprint (Grade 1) over 1000m

1 - 13 BOHICA (M/A Azzie) S Khumalo 60.0 - 125

2 - 12 WINTER STORIES (P A Peter) C Orffer 60.0 - 114

3 - 3 MR COBBS (C Bass-Robinson) R Fourie 60.0 - 113

4 - 6 REAL GONE KID (B Crawford) A Marcus 60.0 - 112

5 - 15 BOLD RANSOM (P A Peter) L Mxothwa 60.0 - 110

6 - 9 MASTER ARCHIE (P A Peter) G Lerena 58.0 - 120

7 - 10 ALESIAN CHIEF (C J Lensley) C Habib 58.0 - 116

8 - 8 AFRICAN RAIN (C Bass-Robinson) A Domeyer 58.0 - 113

9 - 2 VAL D'ORCIA (P A Peter) C Zackey 58.0 - 105

10 - 14 HELLO WINTER HELLO (J J van Vuuren) K de Melo 57.5 - 114

11 - 4 TRUE TO LIFE (J J van Vuuren) K Matsunyane 57.5 - 114

12 - 5 ANNA CAPRI (D Nieuwenhuizen) J P v'd Merwe 57.5 - 112

13 - 1 ECSTATIC GREEN (S G Tarry) D Schwarz 57.5 - 99

14 - 11 BIG BURN (P A Peter) W Kennedy 55.5 - 122

15 - 7 HEAVENS GIRL (P A Peter) M Yeni 55.5 - 111

Same Trainer: (2,5,6,9,14,15) (3,8) (10,11)?

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Final field for the R400,000 Grade 2 Heineken SA Nursery (Grade 2) over 1160m

1 - 6 COOL WINTER (P A Peter) M Yeni 60.0 - 89

2 - 7 KARANGETANG (J J van Vuuren) K de Melo 60.0 - 109

3 - 1 LAGUNA VERDE (M N Houdalakis) C Zackey 60.0 - 89

4 - 3 MAGIC TATTOO (S G Tarry) C Habib 60.0 - 93

5 - 2 SET TO GO (P A Peter) W Kennedy 60.0 - 91

6 - 8 THUNDERSTONE (R R Magner) R Danielson 60.0 - 87

7 - 5 UNION SQUARE (M F De Kock) R Fourie 60.0 - 90

8 - 4 VAR PARK (G J Maroun) D De Gouveia 60.0 - 78

9 - 9 MISS COOL (P A Peter) G Lerena 57.5 - 94

Same Trainer: (1,5,9)?

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Final field for the R300,000 4Racing Gerald Rosenberg Stakes (Grade 2)(F&M) over 2000m?

1 - 1 PINK TOURMALINE (B Crawford) L Mxothwa 60.0 - 101

2 - 3 DINDINGWE (P F Matchett) J P v'd Merwe 60.0 - 97

3 - 2 OPERA GLASS (S Moffatt) S Khumalo 60.0 - 91

4 - 5 RAIN IN HOLLAND (S G Tarry) R Fourie 58.5 - 118

5 - 6 SPRINKLES (P A Peter) W Kennedy 56.5 - 110

6 - 4 PERFECT WITNESS (C Dawson) G Lerena 56.5 - 109

7 - 7 TINDER DRY (F Bronkhorst) R Munger 56.5 - 78

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Final field for the R300,000 Racing 240 Camellia Stakes (Grade 2)(F&M) over 1160m

1 - 4 GALLIC PRINCESS (C Dawson) K de Melo 60.0 - 115

2 - 5 SWEET FUTURE (M/A Azzie) S Khumalo 60.0 - 110

3 - 1 WINTER SMOKE (A B Fortune) R Munger 60.0 - 107

4 - 8 MAY QUEEN (H E Adamson) M Yeni 60.0 - 98

5 - 6 MILL QUEEN (D Nieuwenhuizen) M V'Rensburg 60.0 - 96

6 - 9 KAYLA'S CHAMP (F Bronkhorst) D Schwarz 60.0 - 89

7 - 3 FREED FROM DESIRE (P A Peter) W Kennedy 58.0 - 116

8 - 7 SOUND OF WARNING (S G Tarry) R Fourie 58.0 - 111

9 - 2 KISSING POINT (B Crawford) K Matsunyane 58.0 - 99

Final field for the R300,000 4Racing SA Fillies Nursery (Grade 2) over 1160m

1 - 8 MAGIC TYCOON (P F Matchett) K Matsunyane 60.0 - 88

2 - 2 MAHARANEE (P A Peter) W Kennedy 60.0 - 102

3 - 7 NONE OTHER (M N Houdalakis) C Zackey 60.0 - 86

4 - 4 QUEEN OF GAUL (P A Peter) M Yeni 60.0 - 91

5 - 6 SHOW TIME (C J Lensley) C Habib 60.0 - 95

6 - 1 SIMPLE SIMPLE (M F De Kock) R Fourie 60.0 - 0

7 - 5 STRIKE A MATCH (F Bronkhorst) J P v'd Merwe 60.0 - 97

8 - 3 TIME FOR GLORY (W C Marwing) M V'Rensburg 60.0 - 84

Same Trainer: (2,4)

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Final field for the R250,000 The Citizen Gold Bowl (Grade 3) over 3200m

1 - 2 NEBRAAS (S G Tarry) R Fourie 60.0 - 110

2 - 8 IMPERIAL RUBY (C Spies) C Zackey 58.0 - 104

3 - 4 AFRICAN ADVENTURE (J A Soma) J P v'd Merwe 58.0 - 102

4 - 7 BLACK THORN (S G Tarry) K de Melo 52.0 - 91

5 - 1 BARAK (M F De Kock) K Matsunyane 52.0 - 87

6 - 3 AFRAAD (S Moffatt) S Khumalo 52.0 - 82

7 - 5 SHE'S A CRACKER (R R Sage) M Yeni 50.0 - 76

8 - 6 SMILEY RIVER (P P Labuschagne) J R Syster 50.0 - 71

Same Trainer: (1,4)

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