Maurice Kambukwe
REHOBOTH – Veteran race horses Starlile and Leeuloop, both from the Okahandja Racing Club, on Saturday dominated proceedings at the well-attended MTC Winter Cup in Rehoboth, with Starlile winning the Open 2 400m category and Leeuloop taking top honours in the Nambred 2 000m Open race.
The second edition of the MTC Winter Cup, which was held at the town of Rehoboth over the weekend, attracted close to 100 racehorses from across the country and saw the crop of local breeds putting up a thrilling show.
The 2 400m Open race, which was the premier race on the card, as expected saw veteran racehorse Starlile emerging victorious, outpacing second-placed Newton Spark and third-placed You Touched My Heart.
In the Nambred Open 2 000m race, old-time campaigner Leeuloop delivered scintillating performance to outclass a strong field of competitors, which comprised Try Again, Bright Eye, Freedom Fighter, Ouanomake and Sunnyside. Freedom Fighter and Sunnyside had to rely on experience to find their way back into contention during the homestretch, with Sunnyside taking second place and Freedom Fighter finishing third.
Bring Me More claimed first place in the 1 400m Open category, with Icon King and Here’s The Master taking second and third places, respectively. In the Nambred D 1 800m race, Eagle took top spot while Ondemba finished second and Sophia Town took third place.
In the D 1 800m race, Crucreek scooped first place and was closely followed by Lady Yvonne and Burindi in second and third places, respectively. The Nambred Graduation 1 800m race went to Waterloo, with Right Win and Mamba’s Pride finishing second and third.
The Graduation 1 600m race saw West Coast Wonder claiming first place ahead of Favour Me and Gitano’s Jet in second and third places. In the Nambred Maidens 1 600m race, Black River emerged victorious and was followed by Cut The Corners and Bin Laden in second and third places, respectively.
In the Maidens 1 600m race, Honest Illusion took first place after outstripping second-placed Biscuit and third-placed Gimmeachance, while the Maidens Juvenile 1 400m race was won by Tierspoor and saw Lady Diamond and One Time finishing second and third.
Sunnyside was again back in the thick of things in the Nambred A 1 000m race, winning the race ahead of veterans Leeuloop in second and Freedom Fighter in third place. In the A 1 000m race, Starlile added another accolade by winning the highly contested race, which saw Visigoth finishing second and Warm Peg taking third place.
The Nambred D 1000m race was won by Ekuva and Eagle followed in second place, while Waterloo claimed third spot. The Graduation 1 000m race went to West Coast Wonder, while Here’s The Master took second place and Sim Alley Banks claimed third place.
Cut The Corners won the Nambred Maidens 1 000m race, and was closely followed by Mighty Junior in second place and Silver Sun in third place, while the Maidens 1 000m race was won by Gimmeachance, with Life’s A Trip and Apache Girl taking second and third positions.
The Nambred Graduation 1 000m race was won by Dream Girl, who outfoxed second-placed Mamba’s Girl and third place finisher Right Win. The D 1 000m race saw Lady Yvonne cruising to victory with relevant ease, leaving Warm Peg and Days of Thunder to pick up second and third places, respectively.
The Maidens Juvenile 1 000m race, which kicked the day’s proceedings, saw No Name taking first prize, followed by Lady Diamond and Tasuri in second and third places.
The first edition of the MTC Winter Cup was held at Okahandja last year.
- mkambukwe@nepc.com.na