This year’s Grade 1 R2,5million J&B Met, to be run over 2000m at Kenilworth on Saturday January 30, will be no ordinary race - in fact, it will be no ordinary Met.1
It will be all about Pocket Power’s attempt at an incredible fourth successive win of this historical race to add to his fourth successive L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate last weekend.
There were no additions to the 41 strong list when the final supplementary entries and weights were announced on Monday. The chief question provided was whether the seven-year-old Jet Master gelding could be beaten.
Pocket Power might be starting to feel his age as it seemed apparent that he had to draw upon all his reserves of courage to win the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate.
He did not win it as lazily, or with as much nonchalance, as he has done in the past and his trainer Mike Bass also admitted that the J&B Met would be a harder task.
On paper, the 0,75 length L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate runner-up Kapil could beat Pocket Power as he does not carry a Grade 1 penalty, but a mile is his best trip and last year, with the same weight turnaround for a 1,75 length beating in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, he was beaten 3,5 lengths in the J&B Met.
Big City Life would have benefited from his L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate run and as a winner of the Investec Cape Derby, the Daily News 2000 and the Vodacom Durban July, he has no stamina doubts.
The J&B Met has been his summer target from day one of the current season, although he does have a Grade 1 penalty to carry, so is only 0,5kg better off with Pocket Power for the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate defeat.
The other Glen Kotzen-yard entry, Fabiani, who dead-heated with Big City Life for a 1,25 length third in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, is 2,5kg better off with Pocket Power.
Kotzen said that he was working like a “steam train” before the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and was confident he would run a big race.
However, he is not the soundest of horses and it remains to be seen whether the yard can deliver him to the J&B Met in the same condition.
Fabiani won the weight-for-age Ocean Basket Green Point Stakes over 1600m and was then beaten 4,85 lengths in the Midmar Premier Trophy by the Basil Marcus-trained Red Rake over 1800m, albeit when giving away 2,5kg whereas in the J&B Met he will receive 0,5kg.
This would suggest that the mile is his best trip, but he was finishing strongly in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, despite being bumped by a passing Pocket Power close home, and has also gone close over 2400m before.
So he must be a possible contender while it also brings Red Rake right into the picture as well as Pocket Power’s stablemate Fort Vogue, who finished second in the Midmar Premier Trophy before winning the Grade 2 Peninsula Handicap over 1800m, together with the Stephen Page-trained Noblewood, third in the Midmar Premier Trophy.
The Paul Lafferty-trained Thundering Jet will be 1kg better off with Fort Vogue for a short-head defeat in the Peninsula, which also gives him a shout.
Red Rake, who will receive 2kg from Pocket Power, has improved out of all recognition since gelding and has become an extremely effective front-runner.
Bernard Fayd’Herbe might have a few sleepless nights worrying about where to place Pocket Power in the J&B Met, as he will not want Red Rake to escape by too far at the top of the straight.
Having said that, Red Rake beat the Bass-trained Fort Vogue by 3,25 lengths in the Midmar Premier Trophy on the identical weight terms that he faces him in the J&B Met and this should give Pocket Power’s yard a pointer to Red Rake’s ability.
It must also be noted when evaluating the chances of both Fort Vogue and Red Rake that both the Midmar Premier Trophy and Peninsula Handicap winners haven’t had a great record in the J&B Met in recent years and the Bass yard are likely to be more concerned about the Charles Laird trio, Dan De Lago, Oracy and Smart Banker.
Dan De Lago is the choice of stable jockey Anton Marcus. This horse was said last season to be very immature with a lot of improvement in him as a four-year-old and he has proved that with a couple of eye-catching runs this season.
Oracy’s Sansui Summer Cup run would suggest he prefers a mile, but he had a tough task at the weights in that race, while Marcus’s hand was forced early.
He can surely do better and will be a big runner in the Met.
Smart Banker, with the Group 1 penalty, will carry the same weight as Pocket Power as will the former Summer Cup winner, the Dylan Cunha-trained Strategic News, who ran a fine fifth in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and is sure to have benefited from the run.
The gallant filly from the Mike de Kock yard, Mother Russia, will give her all, although receiving just 3kg from Pocket Power will not make it easy.
De Kock’s Rudra is an interesting entry as he has not run since winning the Summer Cup in November 2008.
Forest Path, a former De Kock horse now trained by Stephen Page, had no luck in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and can’t be ignored considering his Vodacom Durban July run.
River Jetez will be on the same weight terms with Pocket Power as when defeated by a length last year, but having been defeated in the TBA Paddock Stakes last weekend she might go for the Majorca on Met day in order to have a better chance of claiming that elusive Grade 1 victory.
The only three-year-old entry, the Dean Kannemeyer-trained Noordhoek Flyer, is likely to go for the Investec Cape Derby on Met day.
All in all, Pocket Power faces the toughest test of his career against a star-studded field and the race is sure to generate huge interest.
Journalist: David Thiselton – Gold Circle Publishing
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