Mauritzfontein’s in-form stallion Ideal World had a weekend to remember this week, when his son Rainbow Bridge won Saturday’s G1 Sun Met at Kenilworth impressively.
Rainbow Bridge is a second Met winner for Ideal World in four years, with Ideal World’s Equus Champion daughter Smart Call having won the Met (when sponsored by J&B Met) in 2016.

Trained by Eric Sands, and ridden by in-form jockey Anton Marcus, the four-year-old Rainbow Bridge made it six wins, from just eight outings, when running on strongly to account for favourite, and recent G1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate winner, Do It Again, by three parts of a length. In landing the R5 000 000 Met, Rainbow Bridge, who reeled off five wins from his first five starts, picked up the first G1 win of his career, having finished third in the G1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate at his previous start.

Bred by Wilgerbosdrift and Moutonshoek, Rainbow Bridge (who races in the colours of the late, much missed Chris Gerber) took his earnings to R3 632 500.

He was a R300 000 buy from the 2016 National Yearling Sale.

The gelding, whose previous wins included both the G3 Highlands Winter Guineas and G3 Rainbow Bridge  Winter Classic last year, was one of four winners for his sire this weekend, with Ideal World’s tally this weekend also including Fairview Merchants winner Kimberley Star.

Ideal World’s other winners this weekend included Zimbabwean scorer Crown Brewed, and Zaratos –who shed his maiden over 1400m at Greyville on Friday night.

A son of Kingmambo out of US champion and Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf winner Banks Hill, the regally bred Ideal World is from an exceptionally family with his immediate relatives including champion sire Dansili, US champion Leroidesanimaux (sire of Kentucky Derby hero Animal Kingdom), and the G1 winners Sookera, Promising Lead, Champs Elysees, Cacique and Intercontinental.