• Kenya’s most talented apprentice jockey, Michael Fundi, returns from his suspension and will be hoping to resume his charismatic winning ways and move up the rankings.
• The racing gets underway at 1:35PM with the 2060m Baobab Handicap where Tronador, ridden by P Kiarie, is the marginal favourite over Deon, ridden by the seemingly unbeatable H Muya.
Image: KABIR DHANJI
Horse racing will be coloured with festivities and green to celebrate the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland, St Partick, as well as the prestigious Soprani Trophy Day at the Ngong Racecourse on Sunday.
For the neutral racing aficionados, the six-card event has big stakes amongst smaller and more strategic fields.
It represents an opportunity for the in-form Henry Muya to fatten his lead.
It will also give last season's champion Jockey, Lesley Sercombe, an opportunity to close the gap on Muya by leapfrogging second-placed J Muhindi, who is serving a two-meeting suspension.
Kenya’s most talented apprentice jockey, Michael Fundi, returns from his suspension and will be hoping to resume his charismatic winning ways and move up the rankings.
On the owners' front, Sunday allows Muya to close the gap with the leader, M Binks.
The battle among the trainers is another space that has high stakes.
P Sercombe, Kenya’s leading trainer and racing powerhouse, will be hoping to climb out of her recent bare patch and put some laurels on the board to extend her lead.
With a fray of not long past big victories, trainers J Karari and J Muya have closed the gap on Sercombe and could continue to slice it.
The racing gets underway at 1:35 pm with the 2060m Baobab Handicap where Tronador, ridden by P Kiarie, is the marginal favourite over Deon, ridden by the seemingly unbeatable H Muya.
Last year’s prize purchase, Joanna, ridden by L Sercombe, will be looking to prove her worth.
The 1800m Beau Burn Condition at 2:10 pm favours Allendale, though Marlow, ridden by R Wako — who is five kilos lighter, could cause an upset.
Cooling Time, ridden by M Fundi, will be hoping the apprentice magic can surprise everyone, and is worth a gamble.
The Pretty Witch Handicap at 2:45 pm over 1800m is a chance for jockey C Kimani to get back to winning ways on Twyford.
The 1400m Graham Trophy at 3:20 pm could be the quickest race of the day with Coffee Break, trained by the Irish Ollie Gray, hoping to draw on the legend of St Patrick and the luck of the Irish.
Ripon is the main challenger with great odds, and Cranleigh is a horse with all the belief that needs to manifest his pedigree.
The 3:55 pm Kinta Handicap is a 1200m sprint that Ameerah, ridden by M Fundi, should win given the conditions and the combination. The South African import, Madame Zee, who is yet to run in Kenya, is touted as the main contender.
The Kiri Te Handicap at 4:30 pm is a long-distance test where Dunleavy, who was disappointing in the Guineas, has something to prove against Zamburak and Bampton.
The end of the racing is the beginning of the sundowners and afterparty with music from Nairobi’s finest DJs playing long into the evening.