Durban July
In one of the closest finishes in recent history, Pomodoro edged out 100-1 outsider Smanjemanje to win the Vodacom Durban July at Greyville Racecourse on Saturday.
3 year old Pomodoro, itself a relative outsider at 28-1, placed itself well at the start of the race with Vettel, Beach Beauty and favourite Jackson all leading the pack. Once the race entered the home stretch Pomodoro pushed up past the leaders, while Smanjemanje gave a strong run on the outside. The two matched each other stride for stride until Pomodoro pushed marginally ahead with a strong nudge at the end to win the R3 million showpieces.
Trainer Sean Tarry, who experienced his first win race win with Pomodoro, had earlier played down its chances by relaying the tough campaign they experienced in Johannesburg. However, Tarry was in a far more Jovial mood after the race.
"The July was a gaping hole in my CV so I was delighted to win. I thought Piere (jockey Piere Strydom) got into a phenomenal position from that draw and he is a master of pace so I thought he had it sewn up when he led on the run-in. Then Smanjemanje appeared to give me a real fright” Said Tarry.
Final Placings| 14 | POMODORO | Piere Strydom | S G Tarry | A | 55.0 | 20 | 1 | 0.00 | 133.19 | 20/1 | 28/1 |
| 8 | SMANJEMANJE | Grant Van Niekerk | T Zackey | S | 57.0 | 11 | 2 | 0.05 | 133.20 | 50/1 | 55/1 |
| 5 | CHESALON | Jeff Lloyd | M W Bass | A | 58.0 | 10 | 3 | 1.05 | 133.38 | 13/1 | 18/1 |
| 20 | ETON SQUARE | Glen Hatt | G H Van Zyl | A | 53.0 | 5 | 4 | 1.10 | 133.39 | 40/1 | 40/1 |
| 12 | SOLO TRAVELLER | Muzi Yeni | M F De Kock | A | 56.0 | 14 | 5 | 1.35 | 133.44 | 50/1 | 40/1 |
| 16 | VETTEL (ARG) | Anton Marcus | M F De Kock | A | 53.5 | 8 | 6 | 1.40 | 133.45 | 7/1 | 9/1 |
| 11 | GOLD ONYX (NZ) | Gavin Lerena | S G Tarry | A | 56.0 | 2 | 7 | 2.65 | 133.68 | 15/1 | 22/1 |
| 19 | WHITELINE FEVER | Raymond Danielson | S G Tarry | A | 53.0 | 1 | 8 | 2.75 | 133.70 | 25/1 | 35/1 |
| 4 | BEACH BEAUTY | Sean Cormack | D R Drier | A | 58.0 | 12 | 9 | 4.75 | 134.07 | 13/1 | 18/1 |
| 9 | ENGLISH GARDEN | Bernard Fayd'Herbe | M W Bass | A | 56.5 | 9 | 10 | 5.75 | 134.26 | 8/1 | 15/2 |
| 1 | PIERRE JOURDAN | Robbie Fradd | G M Alexander | A | 60.0 | 13 | 11 | 5.80 | 134.27 | 14/1 | 14/1 |
| 15 | ROYAL BENCHER | Brandon Lerena | A G Laird | A | 55.0 | 7 | 12 | 5.85 | 134.28 | 40/1 | 80/1 |
| 18 | ILHA BELA | Anthony Delpech | M F De Kock | A | 53.0 | 19 | 13 | 6.00 | 134.31 | 13/2 | 11/2 |
| 13 | SAGE THRONE | Richard Fourie | C Scott | A | 55.5 | 4 | 14 | 6.50 | 134.40 | 20/1 | 33/1 |
| 10 | TOP SELLER | M J Byleveld | V H Marshall | A B | 56.5 | 17 | 15 | 8.25 | 134.73 | 50/1 | 55/1 |
| 2 | TALES OF BRAVERY | Felix Coetzee | V H Marshall | A B | 59.5 | 15 | 16 | 9.25 | 134.92 | 33/1 | 80/1 |
| 6 | JACKSON | Karis Teetan | B Crawford | A | 57.0 | 16 | 17 | 9.50 | 134.97 | 18/10 | 18/10 |
| 17 | GORONGOSA (IRE) | Kevin Shea | M F De Kock | A B | 53.5 | 6 | 18 | 10.50 | 135.16 | 15/1 | 15/2 |
| 7 | POLAR BOUND | Stuart Randolph | B Crawford | A | 57.0 | 3 | 19 | 12.00 | 135.44 | 40/1 | 40/1 |
| 3 | CASTLETHORPE (AUS) | Karl Neisius | M W Bass | A | 59.0 | 18 | 20 | 19.25 | 136.84 | 33/1 | 80/1 |
Courtesy of TAB
In : Racing