ISIVUNGUVUNGU finished in the first two in all his five starts after being third in the 2023 Cape Flying Championship.
In addition to the G1 Cape Town Met over 2000m, there is a host of other feature races on the day at Kenilworth in Cape Town.
There are two other G1 events on the card – the Cape Flying Championship over 1000m and the Majorca Stakes for fillies and mares over 1600m.
There are only two G1 1000m races in the country, the other being the Computaform Sprint at Turffontein, and the Cape Flying Championship often produces an exciting finish with less than two lengths separating the first five past the post last year.
The runner to beat has to be ISIVUNGUVUNGU, who finished third last year and then went on to win the G1 Computaform Sprint over 1000m and the G1 Mercury Sprint over 1200m. He had a great warm-up run when a 0.4 lengths second behind THUNDERSTRUCK last time, his first run since July, and that will have brought him on well.
THUNDERSTRUCK has won both his races at Kenilworth and stands out as the main threat, especially with Piere Strydom back in the irons.
Dual G1 winner BEACH BOMB will meet PRINCESS CALLA again in the Majorca Stakes.
The Majorca Stakes over 1600m could see last season’s Horse Of The Year, PRINCESS CALLA, get back on a winning track. She may have found 1800m a touch too far last time when touched off by BEACH BOMB last time and could be a different proposition over 200m less.
The two G3 events are the Politician Stakes over 1800m for 3YOs which is considered to be the Derby Trial, as well as the Western Cape Stayers over 2800m.
Dual G1 winner BEACH BOMB will meet PRINCESS CALLA again in the Majorca Stakes.
