Written by Paul Vettise
Mandela (Sebring) has a few tricks up his sleeve and thankfully the highly-rated colt finally chose to pull a winning one out of the bag at Randwick where he narrowly downed another promising couple of 3-year-olds.
Trainers Peter and Paul Snowden have endured their share of frustrations with Mandela, who cost himself a debut success by ducking out, and he gave further cause for concern at barrier rise in the 2019 Owners Awards H. when he was slowly into stride.
He settled last of the small field under rider Tim Clark, who angled widest at the top of the straight and Mandela was able to finish over the top of his rivals.
Tim Clark belives there is more ability there for Mandela
“It certainly didn’t go to script and the way we wanted things to pan out for us,” Paul Snowden said. “Tim knows the horse very well and full credit to him and got him over the line.
“The horse is only batting on four or five cylinders so time will tell where we go with him. If we go towards some better races he’s going to have to lift.”
"If we go towards some better races he’s going to have to lift.” – Paul Snowden.
Clark said Mandela would have won by a clearer margin, but for interference in the straight.
“He was going to win a lot more comfortably than he did and it knocked the wind out of him and stopped him momentum. He’s still a few things wrong, but the ability is there.”
The front-runner Edison (Fastnet Rock) ducked out under pressure in the straight and held second, but was relegated to third for causing interference to Art Collection (Fastnet Rock), who was promoted to runner-up.
Snowden is unsure what the immediate future holds for Mandela and will talk to his owners before any decision is made.
“He may go out for a break now, we’ll have to talk to Henry and the team and take it from there,” he said.
“He may go out for a break now, we’ll have to talk to Henry and the team and take it from there.” – Paul Snowden.
Snowden was referring to Newgate’s Henry Field, partners in Mandela with the China Horse Club, Horse Ventures, WinStar Farm and G1G Racing and Breeding.
He was bought out of Musk Creek Farm’s draft at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale for $280,000 and is a grand-son of the G1 Champagne S. winner Euphoria (Marauding {NZ}). It’s also the family of the G1 Ubet Classic winner Secret Agenda (Not A Single Doubt).
Mandela as a yearling
While Mandela was able to overcome a tardy start, it proved costly for another promising 3-year-old in True Detective (Shamus Award) in the NSW Trainers’ Association H.
The Chris Waller-trained colt was sent out a dominant favourite and missed the jump before powering home, but came up short with Mandela’s stablemate Misteed (Exceed And Excel) taking the thick end of the stake under Kerrin McEvoy.
Now a three-time winner, Misteed bought out of Amarina Farm’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Sale draft in 2015 by Triple Crown Syndications for $150,000.
She is out of a three-quarter sister to the dual North American Group 1 winner November Snow (USA) (Storm Cat {USA}) and the family of the G1 English Derby winner Anthony Van Dyck (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and the multiple Group 1 winner Morning Line (USA) (Tiznow {USA}).
Misteed as a yearling
