Wilgerbosdrift’s successful late sire Tiger Ridge made his mark at Turffontein on Sunday, when represented by a pair of graded stakes winners.
First of the Tiger Ridge runners to land a graded race was promising 3yo filly Folk Dance, who picked up the first feature race win of her career when romping to a three length score in the G3 Hi-Fi Corporation Fillies Mile on Sunday.
Bred by Wilgerbosdrift and Mauritzfontein, Folk Dance reeled off three wins in her first three races before finishing third in the G1 Thekwini Stakes and second in the G3 Starling Stakes.
Trained by Paul Peter, Folk Dance looks a natural contender for the G2 Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas.
Folk Dance is the second Tiger Ridge daughter to win the Fillies Mile, with champion Cherry On The Top having won the same race back in 2012.
Tiger Ridge is also sire of the top-class racemare Nother Russia, who made it win number seven, from just 12 outings when victorious in the G2 Gauteng Ipi Tombe Challenge, over 1600 metres. Bred by Wilgerbosdrift, the Mauritzfontein owned mare has now three graded triumphs to her name, including the G1 Empress Club Stakes and G3 Acacia Handicap.
A Storm Cat half-brother to US classic winners and leading sires A P Indy and Summer Squall, Tiger Ridge has left behind a plethora of high class performers headed by the G1 winners Noah From Goa, Wagner, and Cherry On The Top.
A former leading first crop sire in South Africa, Tiger Ridge, who died in January 2014, is also making his presence as a broodmare sire, and is already damsire of last season’s G1 Wilgerbosdrift SA Fillies Classic winner Orchid Island and the latter’s unbeaten half-sister Sugar Girl.