Drakenstein Stud’s resident sires enjoyed a wonderful day at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday, with What A Winter sire of Saturday’s G2 East Coast Radio Tibouchina Stakes winner Humdinger, and his stablemate Trippi providing two impressive graded stakes winners on the same card.
Not only did Trippi’s outstanding son Charles Dickens romp to a superb win in Saturday’s G1 Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge, another Trippi son, Winchester Mansion, but also stamped his G1 Hollywoodbets Durban July claims when running out an impressive winner of Saturday’s G3 Hollywoodbets Dolphins Cup Trial.
Bred and owned by Drakenstein Stud, three-year-old Charles Dickens made it win number eight, from just ten starts, when downing a star-studded field to win Saturday’s R1.75 million Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge. The Candice Bass-Robinson trained chestnut, victorious in the G2 World Sports Betting Guineas last time out, proved in a different league to his hapless rivals, with jockey Aldo Domeyer easing the colt down to score by nearly a length and a half.
In landing the spoils on Saturday, Charles Dickens not only claimed the second G1 race of his career (he was also victorious in the G1 Cape Guineas earlier in the season), he also reversed the form with Gold Challenge runner up Al Muthana, who had beaten Charles Dickens into second place when the pair met in the G1 L’Ormarins King’s Plate back in January.
Charles Dickens, who is out of the Dynasty mare Demanding Lady, has now won four graded stakes races, with the colt’s earnings soaring to R3 697 188 with his win on Saturday.
A full-brother to G1 Gbets Cape Derby runner-up Charles and Listed Settlers Trophy victor Somerset Maugham, Charles Dickens is one of 90 stakes winners for his sire, who was South Africa’s Champion Sire of 2015-2016.
The Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge proved a great race for both Trippi and Drakenstein Stud, with the Trippi-sired, and Drakenstein-bred and owned Trip Of Fortune, finishing fourth to Charles Dickens in Saturday’s contest.
Earlier in the day, Trippi gelding Winchester Mansion showed his class when running away with the G3 Hollywoodbets Dolphins Cup Trial over 1800 metres. Under Kabelo Matsunyane, the Brett Crawford-trained four-year-old showed the benefits of gelding when powering away to claim the Cup Trial by more than three lengths.
Runner up, behind another Trippi son in the form of Pacaya, in the G2 WSB 1900 last time out, Winchester Mansion races for his breeder Drakenstein Stud. The gelding, winner of the 2022 G3 World Sports Betting Pocket Power Stakes, has now won four of 14 starts for earnings of R564 100.
Winchester Mansion is out of the Spectrum mare Sea Point and hails from the immediate family of Trippi’s G1 H F Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes-winning son Trip Of Fortune.
Trippi’s impact on Saturday’s racing was further extended by his G2 Selangor Cup-winning son Gold Standard, sire of Saturday’s ninth race winner Bright Star. A member of her sire’s eye-catching first crop, the Stone Hill Stud bred Bright Star was winning for a third time on Saturday.
Remarkably, Trippi’s impact was also felt in North America on Saturday, with Trippi’s maternal grandson Not This Time the sire of Saturday’s G1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes winner Up To The Mark and G2 Brooklyn Stakes victor Next.
Original article written by Cape Breeders Club