Met champ tops July log

Star Cape filly Oh Susanna, impressive winner of the Grade 1 Sun Met for trainer Justin Snaith, tops the first Vodacom Durban July Log of 2018 as expected.

Coral Fever from the Robbie Sage stable ran out a surprise winner of the Grade 1 Premier’s Champion Challenge at Turffontein earlier this month and pretty much guaranteed his position in the 2200m spectacle at Greyville on 7 July.

The Sean Tarry stable is the country’s leading yard but at this stage has just one of its entries in the top 20.

That is the winner of the Summer Cup, Liege, who occupies third spot ahead of the threeyear-old colt Surcharge from the yard of Stuart Pettigrew.

The four-year-old Russian Sage gelding Perovskia from the stable of veteran Cape trainer Harold Crawford elbowed his way onto the log with his unexpected victory in the Grade 2 Independent On Saturday Drill Hall Stakes at Greyville last Friday.

Before that win – the sixth of his career – he had run consistently well and only missed the placings four times in 13 starts.

Snaith has four nominees in the top 18, with Oh Susannah being supported by Investec Cape Derby runner-up Do It Again, African Night Sky and Star Express.

Irish import Cascapedia is master trainer Mike de Kock’s sole representative in the top 18, having won the London News.

However, his three-year-old Captain Al colt Like A Panther is just on the outside looking in and could make his way into the final field as the season progresses.

The Dean Kannemeyer stable, which has an excellent record in the country’s biggest race, finds two of its entries, It’s My Turn, who was strongly fancied for the Vodacom Durban July last year, and the runner up in the Peninsula Handicap, The Slade, among those just outside the top 18. –