Winless in three starts since pocketing the $450,000 winners cheque for The Showdown at Caulfield back in April, the Matt Cumani-trained Khoekhoe opened his stakes account when defeating a field of promising young stayers in Saturday’s Listed Super Impose Stakes (1800m) at Flemington.
Given a picture perfect ride by Fred Kersley, the 3yo son of Turffontein held the challenge of the lightly raced Tavistock gelding Young Werther by a long-head with a further three-quarter of a length back to the Savabeel gelding Albarado in third.
“it’s huge, he is a real stable star he did very well at two and we were thinking a possible Guinea path but he always struck me as a horse that wanted a bit further,” Cumani said.
“We diverted from a Guineas path after two fairly ordinary attempts at the shorter distances but he was always finishing off really well so I was quite confident going into today.”
“We thought we would go back to the way he liked to be ridden, which is pretty quiet, but he actually broke so well Fred just went with him and put him in a beautiful spot, great ride by Fred he timed it perfectly.
Cumani would not commit to a start in the Victoria Derby.
“I think he could get up to 2500m in time but not this prep,” he said.
“We will see how he pulls up from this, but he still has plenty of maturity to come. Going up to 2500m might just bottom him out so I would like to keep him to this distance around 2000m and we will build on that.”
There is not a lot to be learned from the pedigree of Khoekhoe to suggest he would be a Derby horse.
He becomes the seventh stakes-winner for Blue Gum Farm’s handsome stallion Turffontein (Johannesburg) a dual Group 1 winner over 1200m and 1400m.
Purchased by his trainer for $50,000 out of the Hollylodge Thoroughbreds draft at the 2019 Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale, Khoekhoe is the seventh winner from as many to race out of the Cape Cross mare, Walvis Bay who won two races over 1000m.
Her dam, Spring Pass (Anabaa) is a granddaughter of Passing Gull (Arctic tern) who is a half-sister to Razyana the dam of Danehill.
Walvis Bay has shown a great return on her purchase price of $19,000 at the 2009 Inglis Australian Easter Broodmare Sale.
She had a Reward For Effort filly make $28,000 out of the Hollylodge Thoroughbreds draft at the 2020 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale.
After not being served in 2018, the daughter of Cape Cross visited Spendthrift Farms young I Am Invincible stallion Overshare last spring.
