The Mike de Kock-trained Noah From Goa (rumored to be leaving SA shores in due course) and the Mike Bass-trained Silver Mountain are the two horses to date in line for the respective R2 million and R1 million Triple Crown and Triple Tiara bonus prizes, but two other horses could potentially join them because two opportunities are contained within the first legs of these intriguing series’.

The SA Triple Crown’s first leg consists of both the Gr 1 R1-million Grand
Parade Cape Guineas, won by Noah From Goa on Saturday 19 December 2015 at
Kenilworth, and the Gr 2 R1-million Betting World Gauteng Guineas to be run
at Turffontein on Saturday 27 February 2016.
The second leg is the Gr 1 R2-million SA Classic, to be run over 1800m at
Turffontein on Saturday 2 April 2016, and the final leg is the Gr 1
R2-million SA Derby to be run over 2450m at Turffontein on Saturday 30
April 2016.
A R2-million bonus will be awarded to any horse who can win either one or
both of the first two legs as well as the second and third legs.

The Wilgerbosdrift SA Triple Tiara’s first leg consists of both the Gr 1
WSB R1-million Cape Fillies Guineas, won by Silver Mountain on Saturday 5
December 2015 at Kenilworth, and the Gr 2 R500,000 Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng
Fillies Guineas to be run at Turffontein on Saturday 27 February 2016.
The second leg is the Gr 1 R1-million Wilgerbosdrift SA Fillies Classic to
be run over 1800m at Turffontein on Saturday 2 April 2016 and the final leg
is the Gr 2 R1-million Wilgerbosdrift SA Oaks to be run over 2450m at
Turffontein on Saturday 30 April 2016.
There will be a R1-million bonus to any horse able to win either or both of
the first leg races as well as the second and third legs.

A serious candidate for Triple Crown glory is the Mike Azzie-trained
gelding Abashiri, an ultra exciting son of Go Deputy, whose giant stride
makes him perfectly suited to Turffontein. On pedigree he will stay the
2450m of the Derby and can do better over 1600m than his third place finish
to Noah From Goa in the Investec Dingaans considering he needed that run.
The second ever horse to win the SA Triple Crown after Horse Chestnut was
the Goeff Woodruff-trained Louis The King, a rags-to-riches horse who
became a public hero after achieving the feat two seasons ago.

Last year the Sean Tarry-trained Siren’s Call appeared to have the Triple
Tiara in her grasp when overtaking Pine Princess close to home in the SA
Oaks but the latter fought back to deny her. She would have been the third
to have done it after the Mike de Kock-trained Igugu in 2011 and the Ormond
Ferraris-trained Cherry On The Top in 2013.
The Bass yard are undecided where Silver Mountain will go next. She is the
stand out of a crop which has overall not shone to date, unlike last year’s
outstanding three-year-old fillies crop.
However, a star could still emerge and candidates include the Robbie
Sage-trained Madame Dubois, who impressed when winning the Gr 3 Princess
Charlene Of Monaco Stakes over 1400m at the end of October and more
recently, the Three Troikas Stakes (Gr 3).