•Leading this change-of-the-guard is Henry Muya, who sits at the top of the Jockey Championship with twelve wins to his name.
•Muya will be hoping to maintain if not extend his lead considering his rich vein of form lately.
After a short hiatus to compensate for the Easter holidays, racing is back this Sunday with a compelling seven-card race at Ngong Racecourse. The recent rains mean the track is a lush green carpet made for racing.
The healthy and rich state of racing is such that the theatre of sport plays a fine drama to the ever-growing crowd of connoisseurs and pundits. With the Kenya Derby only a few weeks away, almost every rivalry is a closely fought affair, with none of the usual suspects or dynasties dominating any more.
Leading this change of guard is Henry Muya, who sits at the top of the Jockey Championship with 12 wins. Muya hopes to maintain, if not extend, his lead considering his recent rich vein of form.
Former champion James Muhindi is second, though he will seat out Sunday’s action as he serves his second week of suspension. Last season’s champion, Lesley Sercombe, sits joint third with her fellow stable jockey, Charles Kimani, with nine wins.
The contest between the owners is a monument to the competitiveness of racing this season with Mary Binks, Joe Muya and Mim Haynes all tied at the top.
Last season’s leading owner, Lady Sarah Spencer, who is fourth on the log, explained her change in fortunes.
“We like to give our two-year-olds time to grow. If they aren’t ready to run, we don’t push them from a welfare point of view. We would like to save the results for when they are three years or older.
“Our older horses are heavily weighted in the handicap so we are choosy about what races they run in for their soundness in their future careers after racing.
“There is no doubt that this year’s three-year-olds are more competitive than they have been in the past due to the exciting increase in number of horses on the track and the Kenyan community becoming more interested in horse racing,” she said.
This current healthy state of affairs is a testament to the exponential growth and robustness of the racing over the past year, which is expected to continue. For Sunday’s fixture, it is near perfect racing conditions that favour nobody in particular.
Kenya’s great Irish racing talent, trainer Ollie Gray said: “The track is amazing. It’ll be a touch softer with the rains but it’s still good ground with great cover and the best that I can remember in my racing time.”
The races get underway with the 1200m JCK Rose Bowl at 1 pm where High Legislation, ridden by Michael Fundi, remains the favourite.
Daytime Girl will be the main competition but is carrying a lot of weight, and Cranleigh, down in the distance, could look for a podium. It is hard to look past the in-form Allendale in the 1:35 pm 1600m Bacchus Maiden . The King Midas Handicap at 2:10 pm over 1600m will be a clash between Dalkeith and Easterly, with the former preferred, though it will be close.
The 2:45 pm Arkle Trophy is an 1800m middle-distance race with Carlisle looking like the best of the rest, but Joanna has something to prove and Ten Eighty, who finished third in the Guineas, could be a surprise contender.
The prestigious Delamere Gold Vase being run at 3:20 pm will see Saint Moritz go up against General Lee over 2060m. Having been written off several times already, and proving everyone wrong, General Lee remains a contender, though this race could see the passing of the baton to what is easily the best horse in racing in Kenya, Saint Moritz.
The Cleopatra Handicap at 3:55 pm over 1200m shouldn’t see any difficulties for Twyford to claim laurels. The last race of the afternoon is the 4:30 pm Fire Queen Maiden, a race of mostly un-run two-year-olds, a complete lottery.
The end of the racing is the beginning of the Sundowners and after-party with music from Nairobi’s finest DJs playing long into the evening, making it an unmissable event.