Sandown Stud’s well-performed young stallion Soqrat came up with his first winner when his two-year-old son I Belong stormed home to win convincingly at the Vaal on Thursday.
Trained by Roy Magner, I Belong, a member of his sire’s first crop was given a superb ride by Gavin Lerena to land Thursday’s TAB Telebet 0861 000 822 Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1700m.
Lerena produced his mount with a strong late flourish, and the pair flew up to score a shade cosily by three parts of a length.
Bred by Narrow Creek Stud, I Belong was making his fourth career start on Thursday with the Soqrat colt having finished fourth on debut before finishing fifth and second in his subsequent two starts.
I Belong, who is out of the All Too Hard mare Botoolah, was a R120 000 buy from the 2023 August Two Year Old Sale.
His sire Soqrat, Equus Champion 2YO Colt of 2017-2018, has now had four runners from his first crop either win or finish in the money.
A triple G1 winner, who won both the G1 Cape Guineas and G1 H F Oppenheimer Horse Chestnut Stakes at three, Soqrat is directly descended in female line from the great mare Gondolette, also ancestress of such champion sires as Linamix, Hyperion, Mossborough, and Sir Tristram, to name a few.