A case of wham bam as Hawwaam takes on and thrashes older rivals

Turffontein: Premier’s Champions Challenge (Grade 1) 1m2f, turf

Hawwaam, 15-2 for the Durban July, looks likely to go to the head of the market after the way he trounced older horses in this valuable test.

Anton Marcus, riding Mike de Kock’s latest star for the first time, had the 3-7 hotpot handy from the start and sent him on a furlong and a half out to win by four lengths, a margin which did little justice to the ease of victory.

Second was stablemate Cascapedia, bred by Timmy Hyde at his Camas Park Stud in Co Tipperary.

Marcus, winning the race for the fifth time in 13 seasons, said: “Hawwaam gave me an incredible feel and hopefully Sheikh Hamdan and Angus Gold were watching.

"Anybody could have done the job – he was the best horse in the race – and there was no pressure from Michael whatsoever. This is really special.”

De Kock, on the other hand, admitted to some strain, saying: “We did feel a bit of pressure as he was taking on older horses.

"Both he and Cape Guineas winner Soqrat will be entered for the Daily News [at Greyville on June 1] and I will probably also enter both of them for the Rising Sun Gold Challenge there a week later.

Mike de Kock: “We did feel a bit of pressure as he was taking on older horses'Credit: Edward Whitaker

"But I'm not going to be stubborn and stupid – as I was last night [when Soqrat was beaten into fourth in the KRA Guineas] – and go down there with a bad draw.”

Turffontein: Computaform Sprint (Grade 1) 5f, turf

Bureaucracy in Mauritius enabled Piere Strydom to win Johannesburg’s top sprint for the fifth time in 12 seasons, but 21-4 shot Pacific Trader’s eagerness to get on with the job nearly cost him.

“I was supposed to be riding in Mauritius by now but they kept holding me back and eventually I decided I was committed to this meeting," said Strydom. "So I was able to take the ride when Brett Crawford phoned me.

“If you can get a good jump in this race it is half-won, but Pacific Trader tried to jump too quick and hurt his mouth. I was just hoping he was okay. He flew out, tracked the filly and proved good enough.”

Princess Rebel (36-1), collared in the last two strides, was beaten only a head, with 4-1 favourite Chimichuri Run a length back in third.

Crawford, also successful with the brilliant Laisserfaire in 2002, added: “Pacific Trader is an out-and-out five-furlong horse but he didn’t do well in Durban last year, so this was always his mission after the end of the Cape season.”

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