Outlaw King steals the show in style
Boom 2YO back on song in Cape Merchants after missing 3YO season because of virus
CAPE TOWN - Outlaw King won the De Grendel Cape Merchants, a Grade 2 over 1,200m, at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Dec 22.
Ridden by Sean Veale, the Rafeef four-year-old wore down long-time leader Cafe Culture (Serino Moodley) to capture the thicker end of the 500,000 rands (S$36,700) in prize money.
Surjay (Kabelo Matsunyane), who raced prominently down the inside, just held off Outlaw King’s stable companion The Real Prince’s (Athandiwe Mgudlwa) late rally to keep third.
The first four placings were filled by horses who were drawn and raced towards the inside of the straight course.
Drawn awkwardly, King Of The Gauls (Richard Fourie), Dance Variety (Corne Orffer) and Seeking The Stars (Gavin Lerena), all folded out of contention.
Meu Capitano (Chase Maujean) did best of those who raced on the standside, but even the Piet Steyn-trained four-time winner was soundly trounced seven lengths back.
Trainer Dean Kannemeyer explained that Outlaw King, considered one of the best of his generation at two, contracted a virus in KwaZulu-Natal and was duly laid off, allowing nature to take its healing course.
The leading South African trainer, who was annexing his third Cape Merchants after Gimme A Prince in 2022 and Cosmic Highway in 2023, graciously thanked owners of the DK Racing Syndicate for their patience, as the gelding subsequently missed much of his three-year-old season.
“We just had to leave him and hope that he’d come back strong in the Spring. Thankfully, that’s what has happened, and I’m super thrilled for the Syndicate,” he said.
Kannemeyer, who besides The Real Prince, also saddled defending champion Cosmic Highway and Teflon Man, also highlighted Outlaw King’s sire, Rafeef.
“He’s a very good, up-and-coming stallion,” he said.
Veale was equally impressed with Outlaw King’s fourth career win.
“Outlaw King feels like he needs further, but he was going so well early on that when I let him stride, he quickened really nicely to win,” said Veale.
Carrying 54kg, Outlaw King was shrewdly backed from 16-1 into 17-2 in South Africa. The payout on the Singapore Pools tote was $49.
The winning margin over 25-1 chance, Cafe Culture, was 1¼ lengths with Surjay, who put up a sterling run under 63kg, and market mover from 10s into 6s, The Real Prince another 1¾ lengths further away.
The winner’s time was 1min 11.2sec on a fast-running surface, though the De Grendel Cape Merchants was run into a headwind.
Races run around the turn seemed to favour horses making their stretch runs up the outer whereas the sprint course evidently was biased towards the inner, though the penetrometer reading indicated nothing odd.
Take nothing away from the classy winner. The beautifully turned out Outlaw King received a smooth trip and showed his class to prevail and garner a Group 2 – 511 days since his last win at Hollywoodbets Greyville – for jubilant connections.
CAPE RACING
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