Top weight, no problem!

William Robertson gave chunks of weight to most of his rivals in a Pinnacle Stakes over 1160m at Turffontein on Saturday, 4 November, but gave them a hiding under a hands-and-heels ride from Gavin Lerena. This was his eighth career win, he clocked 67,22s.

It's not easy to find races for sprinters with high merit rating and this one came along as a nice prep for what lies ahead this summer. "He just lost his confidence a bit earlier this season and when we found this race we knew it was a perfect contest for him, he holds the class record for this course and distance. He's got undeniable class," said Xander Spies, part-owner.

Lerena said: "He went down well well today, well done to the Spies stable for keeping him sound, he is a big boy. I let him go maybe 100m to early, but he got a bump and that put him back on his wrong leg. He ran a great race."

Corne Spies thanked the owners, Xander partnered with Corne Spies Racing, Rob MacNab, Keegan Govender and Jannie De Lange's Waste Glass Recovery.

"William Robertson has done us proud. It's nice to be back in the winner's box with him. He's proven to be better down the straight, but there are not many races we can go for. We'll keep our eyes open for the next suitable race," said Corne.

William Robertson is by Rafeef out of Massechusetts, raised at Ridgemont.