Trainer Stuart Pettigrew looks to have a very smart filly on his hands in the form of three-year-old Anything Goes.
The latter, a three-year-old daughter of Var, made it four wins from as many starts when she recorded a game win in the G1 Thekwini Stakes (1600m) run at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Saturday, and Anything Goes clearly ranks among the leaders of her generation.
Anything Goes was sent off a 3-1 tote favourite for Saturday’s R325 000, despite the presence of Golden Slipper 1-2 finishers Love Bomb and Caralluma, the highly touted Maledimo, and eye catching recent winner War Of Athena.
The filly, who provided breeders Varsfontein Stud with a second consecutive graded winner on Saturday’s card, was given a fine ride by Diego De Gouveia.
De Gouveia kept his filly just off the pace set by Maledimo, and sent his filly down the inside when the front runner faded out of contention.
Anything Goes, who was making her first start at Greyville, kept galloping but had to dig down deep when promising Act Of War filly War Of Athena (13-2) launched a strong challenge on the outside.
The favourite held on well to post a long neck win at the expense of War Of Athena, who is a great advertisement for her young Cape Guineas winning sire. Eye-catcher of the race was debut winner Princess Calla (12-1), who, despite having a troubled passage and pulling hard early on, stormed home from well off the pace to take third.
The blue-blooded Anything Goes, a R275 000 buy from last year’s National Sale, claimed her first graded triumph in a time of 96.9.
A 12th G1 winner for the Avontuur Thoroughbred Farm based Var, Anything Goes is the second graded stakes winner produced by the unplaced Parade Leader mare Dance Domain. The latter, also dam of exported G3 Sea Cottage Stakes hero Green Laser, is a half-sister to five stakes horses notably triple G1 winner, and Equus Champion, Capetown Noir.
