Winners Warm Up For South Africa's Summer Season

Captain America justified favouritism in Sunday’s Matchem Stakes at Durbanville to give his trainer Brett Crawford his first win in the Group 3 race.

Captain America was having his first start since an unplaced finish in the G1 President’s Champions Challenge in April.

He was the top rated horse and had to concede weight to all his 10 rivals in the 1400m feature.

Always well positioned, Captain America travelled well and was sent for home with 300m left to go by jockey Corne Orffer.

The favourite gamely held off a late challenge from a fast finishing Baritone with the winner’s stablemate Midnite Zone running above expectations back in third.

The Varsfontein Stud-bred Captain America was a R400 000 buy from the 2012 Emperors Palace National Yearling Sale.

Sunday’s win pushed his earnings to R3,328,425.

He was one of two Graded winners on the day for his sire Captain Al, whose daughter Captain’s Flame landed the G3 Diana Stakes.

Winner of two of the three legs of last season’s Winter Series, the Andre Nel-trained Captain’s Flame was having her first start since winning the Listed Stormsvlei Fillies Mile in May.

Captain’s Flame ran on strongly to get the better of long-time rival Goodtime Gal by three parts of a length with last year’s Diana runner up Come Fly With Me back in third.

Hapless runner up Goodtime Gal has now met Captain’s Flame three times nd finished second to that filly three times.

The Sabine Plattner owned Captain’s Flame was a R1.2 million buy from the 2014 Emperors Palace National Yearling Sale, and Sunday’s success pushed the filly’s tally to five wins in just seven outings.

Captain’s Flame will now be aimed at some of the major fillies features in the upcoming Cape Summer Season ahead.

Captain America and Captain’s Flame are by Captain Al out of daughters of champion sire Fort Wood.

Captain’s Flame is the third stakes winner out of the winning Fort Wood mare Kindling, also dam of G2 Tibouchina Stakes winner Fragrant Al and Listed winner Rekindle.

AT TURFFONTEIN favourite Kangaroo Jack showed his class with a dominant win in Saturday's G2 Joburg Spring Challenge.

Trained by Gary Alexander, the four-year gelding made it five wins on the bounce with a smooth two length victory in the R400 000 contest for a third consecutive graded race success.

With wins in both the G2 Post Merchants and G3 Spring Spree Stakes to his credit, the upwardly mobile Kangaroo Jack defied a 7lb penalty with a deceptively easy win over a field which included G1 Vodacom Durban July winner The Conglomerate and five other graded stakes winners.

Kangaroo Jack, ridden with typical flair by regular rider Andrew Fortune, pounced at the 200m mark and drew clear to register a two length win over Will Pays and G2 Drill Hall Stakes hero New Predator.

Kangaroo Jack has now won six of ten outings and banked over R880,000.

In Saturday's G2 Joburg Spring Fillies and Mares Challenge at Turffontein the Australian-bred 45/1 chance Mella Maria recorded a shock win.

A stablemate to favourite and last year's winner Lazer Star, Mella Maria was dispatched as a longshot in Saturday's 1450m contest following two poor efforts.

Given a strong front running ride by Triple Crown winnning jock Karl Zechner, Mella Maria went to the front early and kept on well to win by a neck from Bella Sonata and Visuality, giving the daughter of Star Witness the first feature race win of her career.

Her fellow Mike Azzie trained Lazer Star proved bitterly disappointing and finished second last.

Mella Maria was bought at the 2014 Magic Millions National Yearling Sale at the Gold Coast.