Flat Racing - Sunday 13th July 2014

[robertob]

14.05 Turffontein: FM 86 Handicap, 1.160m - Wide open race with many uncertainties. Eight runners gives us a nice chance for some each-money and bottom weight Hello Polly is a very interesting runner here today. She hasn't been anywhere near her best in the last two starts, but before that she finished an excellent 2nd over CD, just being piped on the line. She is a very speedy sort, usually bounces out off the gates leading the field. She had to race under top weight in most of her recent runs since she finally got off the mark in a maiden over course and distance in January when she absolutely smashed a field which wasn't too bad considering that the form works out quite well. Hello Polly steps up markedly in class today, but with a nice light weight of only 52kg she must have a fine chance to run a big race and bring it home under a front-running ride given that her course record is excellent with 1win, 2places in five attempts. --- Hello Polly @ 12/1 Sportingbet - 1pt e/w 15.15 Turffontein: FM 83 Handicap, 1.600m - Lightly raced 3yo filly Featherfoot is extremely progressive and won three of her five career starts to date. If she can progress further, she's a fine chance to win this and develop into a pattern class filly. However she has to defy top weight today with 61.5kg which is a very big ask for a 3yo against some experienced and older sorts. If she is all class, she has to show it today in order to be able win it under such a ig weight. I like to look further down the scale to the also still generally lightly raced African Blue. She is quite progressive, even though she has won only one race from eight starts to date, but there were some factors I believe that counted against her in recent starts. She won a maiden, which form works out well enough, in the manner of a very smart filly when she trailed the field in a slowly run race, had to be switched widest then and had still a good six lengths to make up from 400m out, yet she produced a stunning turn of foot to win it in the last couple of strides, while looking absolutely in control. She disappointed in a subsequent start when dropped in trip, when connections campaigned her in the following races mostly over 2.000m then, a trip that seems to stretch her stamina. She usually faded in those races in the closing stages, yet run consistently well. Her only other start over 1.600m resulted in a 1l beaten third place, when she made stylish progress from the rear of the field to lead briefly 100m out, but she seemed to lose bit of focus when it really matters. She drops back to this trip today and has a nice weight, most importantly blinkers are fitted first time, and they should make a huge difference to her. If they can keep her focused, then she should be ale to realize her potential and I suspect she can be easily a good deal better than her current mark of 73. --- African Blue @ 6/1 Sportingbet - 2pts ein