Picture: Paul Peter yard staff celebrate the record (JC Photos).

Paul Peter Sets New South African Record

Paul Peter has had to wait a while by his standards to achieve the two winners he needed, after last weekend’s racing, to set the new South African record of 216 winners in a season.

He surpassed the previous record of 215 set by Sean Tarry in the 2016/2017 season.

A live link on channel 240 showed Peter celebrating with two others in KZN where he is preparing his horses out of Summerveld for Marshalls World Of Sport Gold Cup day.

Peter had a rare blank at The Vaal Classic track meeting on Tuesday and was blank after the first six races today.

However, he then went boom, boom with favourites in the last two races, Mercury Rising (Gimmethegreenlight) and Vanderbilt.

Mercury Rising was sent to him after a fair effort in the Grade 1 SA Fillies Sprint having earlier been purchased out of the Justin Snaith yard.

It was a winner with Peter’s first run for new prominent owner Sandy Arundel of Itssa It & Business Solutions (Pty) Ltd.

It was fitting it happened on his record-breaking day.

However, even more fitting was Peter then broke the record with a Wilgerbosdrift and Mauritzfontein-bred half-brother to Summer Pudding, who was the horse who well and truly put him on the map.

Summer Pudding, bred by Wilogerbosdrift and Mauritzfontein and raced by Mauritzfontein Stud, gave Peter his first ever Grade 1 win in the Wilgerbosdrift SA Fillies Classic before going on to land the Wilgerbosdrift SA Triple Tiara as well as the Grade 1 Woolavington 2000 and the Grade 1 WSB Summer Cup.

Vanderbilt is also fittingly owned by reigning champion owner Suzette Viljoen.

He has won all three starts he has had for the Peter stable, having started off in Cape Town and then being sent to the Eastern Cape.

It was most fitting that stable jockey Warren Kennedy brought both Mercury Rising and Vanderbilt home having played such a big part in the Peter yard success.

Kennedy lay down in the flower bed in the winner’s enclosure after the last race and took a deep breath.

He then smilingly explaining that finally achieving the record was a big weight off the shoulders of himself, Paul, Tony, Josh, Marc, the grooms and everybody else involved.

Tony and Josh are Paul’s sons and assistants and Marc is his nephew and assistant.

Warren said, “It’s a massive effort and to have broken the record is what dreams are made of.”

It was then revealed by Tony that the record had actually been the chief goal for the season and was given even a higher priority than the championship.

Tony added, “I said ‘Dad, you’re going crazy, it’s not possible … but the man’s a freak. His is a proper trainer.”

Tony concluded, “It has been a huge team effort. Every member of the staff has played a part.”

Picture: Hewitson after an easy win yesterday (Wednesday) aboard the Douglas Whyte-trained Our Lucky Glory (Crafty C T). (hkjc.com)

Hewitson – Sticking To Original Offseason Plan – Reflects On Season

Lyle Hewitson is sticking to his original plan to visit family in the UK during the Hong Kong off season so will not be attempting to get rides on Marshalls World Of Sports Gold Cup day.

Reflecting on his meteoric season and comparing it to his three championship seasons in South Africa, he said, “I am very proud of my achievements here, especially on being here for only half of the season, and after returning from injury etc. It has been great and really is amazing to get to this point. But this is just the foundation hopefully to future success here! But being a champion jockey in SA is what got me here, and winning numerous championships is very special especially the number of winners and at such a young age. So those were very special and important to me!”

Hewitson’s 26 winners on the island this season, with just one meeting remaining, puts him in 12th position on the log , but all of the jockeys above him have had more rides. He only arrived for the season at the end of November having ridden 39 winners up until then in South Africa’s season.

He has had 331 rides on the island which gives him a strike rate of 7.8%, which does not sound high but it should be remembered that the fields are usually full and all of the jockeys on the island compete in the same meetings.

Consequently, only three jockeys on the island have a strike rate above 10%, and they are the three at the top of the log.

Zac Purton has ridden 132 winners at a strike rate of 19.9%, Joao Moreira has ridden 132 winners at 19.2% and Karis Teetan has ridden 72 winners at 11%.

Furthermore, Hewitson might well have the highest strike rate on the island since mid-April when a couple of meetings in which he rode five winners in six mounts turned his Hong fortunes around.

From any winner being something for his folowers back in SA to celebrate it is now a disappointment to not see him in the winner’s enclosure in any meeting.

What makes his season all the more remarkable is he returned from a horror fall on Champions Day.

He said to the South China Morning Post recently, after missing a month with a fractured pelvis “That [quiet] spell has been important. From a physical riding aspect, it’s made me have to better myself. From a mental side of things, it’s made me tougher and more mature as a rider. I’m better for it. It tests you in all different aspects of being a professional sportsman and also as an individual. You learn a lot more about yourself and at the same time how much stronger you can be if you actually push through that.”

Hewitson is enjoying life on the island since lockdown has ended and has even been able to get in some surfing.

Picture: Future Girl winning easily yesterday (Wednesday) under Luyolo Mxothwa (Wayne Marks).

Futura On Fire

The Drakenstein Stud son of Dynasty throws big and impressive horses who improve with a run or two and three of his youngsters have recorded commanding victories in the last week.

First up was the Paul Peter-trained Spielberg on July 7.

This big gelding is out of the Var speedster Miss October and was bred by Avontuur Std and DG Abery.

He is a half-brother to the Grade 1 winner Tempting Fate.

He showed good early pace in the 1000m maiden to get himself in front after breaking together with a few.

He then powered away from them to win by 2,75 lengths.

It was just a winter Highveld maiden but his time was the second quickest of the day over the trip and only half-a-secodn slower than that of thirteen-time winner All Of Me, who carried 1,5kg less than him.

He looks to have a bright future.

Then on Tuesday the big Fanie Bronkhorst-trained Futura filly Typeset, who was also bred by Avontuur, was allowed to go off at 25/1 on debut.

She is out of an Argentinian-bred Stakes-placed half-sister to Grade 3 Byerley Turk winner Mambo Mime, who also finished third in nthe Grade 1 Daily News 2000, so the big odds might have been the belief she would need further.

However, she came from off the pace to pass them in effortless fashion and win by 3,25 lengths, beating an odds on favourite who had finished close up to the promising Mercantour in his previous start.

She clearly has plenty of natural speed as does her half-sister Varumba (Var), who finished third in the SA Fillies Nursery.

Then yesterday at Kenilworth the Brett Crawford-trained Drakenstein homebred Future Girl imprssed.

She is out of one time-winning Trippi mare Monte Carlo Girl, who is a half-sister to the Listed-winning Futura filly Sweet Future.

She relaxed beautifully in a handy position after jumping from draw 2 in the 1400m event.

At the top of the straight she showed a superb turn of foot in the soft conditions to put the race to bed and win easing up by 3,25 lengths.

Futura’s three lots at the National Yearling Sale average R200,000 and two at the Cape Premier Yearling Sale averaged R262,500.

However, a pair at the BSA Cape Yearling Sale averaged R52,500, so they are attainable for lesser budgets.

Picture: Itsrainingwilliam will be out to swing it for Imvula (Wayne Marks)

Itsrainingwilliam Could Secure Broodmare Award For Imvula

This year’s Equus Broodmare Of The Year award is up for grabs and might be decided by the Marshalls World Of Sprot Gold Cup day results.

Drakenstein Stud’s Imvula (GB) (Aqlaam) is in the running as dam of Wilgerbosdrift SA Triple Tiara heroine Rain In Holland (Duke Of Marmalade) as well as many times Stakes-placed Rain In Newmarket (Kingsbarns) and also Itsrainingwilliam (William Longsword). The latter won impressively over 1200m last time out and is entered in Gold Cup day’s Grade 1 Premier’s Champion Stakes. If he wins it he will likely clinch it for Imvula.

If Big Burn wins the Grade 1 Mercury Sprint it will give her dam Ignition Lady (Argonaut) of Narrow Creek Stud a shout as she is also dam of last season’s Grade 2 Dingaans winner and multiple Grade 1-placed Catchtwentytwo.

Hollywoodbets Durban July heroine Sparkling Water’s dam Espumanti (GB) (Dansili) of Wilgerbosdrift and Mauritzfontein must have a chance too, as she has previously produced the Grade 2 runner up Gin Fizz.

If Maharanee wins either the Grade 1 Thekwini or Grade 1 Premier’s Champion Stakes, whichever she runs in, it will give her dam Indira (Tiger Ridge) of Wilgerbosdrift and Mauritzfontein a shout as she is also dam of Grade 3 runner up Marigold Hotel.

If Gobsmacked wins the Thekwini it will be a second Grade 1 winner for her dam Bold Nimph (Aus) (Shamardal) of Maine Chance Farms as her daughter Mighty High won the Allan Robertson.

However, following on from the three successive seasons in which Halfway To Heaven of Wilgerbosdrift And Mauritzfontein was a certainty the winning announcement will be eagerly awaited and is sure to have a a few breeders on tenterhooks.

Imvula does look to be the favourite at this stage though.

Picture: The 40-day meet at historic Saratoga Race Course kicks off on July 14, 2022. (Penelope P. Miller/America’s Best Racing)

10 Facts About Saratoga’s Storied 40 Day Meeting Which Started Today

www.americasbestracing.net

There’s nothing quite like a summer in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., a small town nestled near the Adirondacks that comes alive each July as Thoroughbred racing returns to Saratoga Race Course. This year’s meet kicks off July 14, attracting many of the best horses, trainers, and jockeys, as well as avid fans and bettors, from across the country.

Read on for 10 must-know facts about this year’s Saratoga meet.

1. Saratoga Race Course first opened in 1863, making it one of the oldest major sporting venues in the country.

2. Fourstardave, “The Sultan of Saratoga,” won a race at the meet every year from 1987 (age 2) to 1994 (age 9). He now has a Grade 1 race at the track named after him as well as a sports bar.

3. The meet will feature a new “Stars at the Spa” series featuring cultural icons from the Empire State (New York State). Saratoga’s new meet-and-greet is limited to 50 guests and offers a chance to mingle with New York Knicks 90s-era star Charles Oakley, “Real Housewives of New Jersey” star Teresa Giudice, and New York Yankees mulitiple World Series champ Bernie Williams. “Stars at the Spa” will be held at the Paddock Suite, a new hospitality venue for 2022.

4. A total of $22.6 million will be up for grabs in Saratoga’s 77 stakes races this year. Seventeen races are worth $500,000 or more each.

5. The 2022 meet will feature six Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” races: the Whitney Stakes on Aug. 6, the Fourstardave Handicap on Aug. 13, the Ballerina Stakes and Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer Stakes on Aug. 27, and the Flower Bowl Stakes and the Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes on Sept. 3.

6. More than a million people attended the races at Saratoga last summer. A total of 1,046,078 fans packed the track over the course of the 40-day meet, an average of 26,162 people each day. This marked a return to robust attendance after spectators were absent from the track during the 2020 meet due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

7. Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott has won a race on his birthday nearly every year he’s raced at Saratoga. From 19 years when there was racing on his birthday (July 29), he’s won on all but three days, including July 29 over the past two years.

8. There will be 19 Grade 1 (highest level) races at the track this summer, including historic stakes like the $1 million Whitney Stakes and the $1.25 million Runhappy Travers Stakes.

9. Trainer Todd Pletcher has a record 14 training titles at the track since 1998. He’s won the title six of the last 10 years, though Chad Brown has defeated him three of the last four, including in 2021. Brown won a record 46 races in 2018.

10. The total dollars bet on last year’s Saratoga races was an incredible $815,508,063, jumping 15.6% over the prior record of $705,343,949 set in 2019.

Picture: The unbeaten Grade 3 Pretty Polly Stakes winner Galla Vanting (Querari) (JC Photos).

All Quality On CTS HIT Sale Saturday

There are 14 quality lots catalogued for the CTS Horses In Training Sale at Turffontein Racecourse this Saturday, 16 July. The Sale will be held in the parade ring directly after the last race of the day, which is due off at 16:45.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW CATALOGUE

Three additional entries have been added to the original 11-horse catalogue. They are Lot 12 Leahlicious, an unraced Futura filly from the family of Deliberation and Gang Related; Lot 13 Paradise Flower, an unraced filly by Crusade out of a mare by Jet Master, and Lot 14 Space Wolf, an unraced New Predator colt out of a mare who has already produced four winners.

The other lots catalogued include three Graded performers, and they are discussed in more detail, HERE.

The sale will be covered live on Racing TV (DSTV#240), and buyers wanting to participate online can request a Zoom link from john@cthbs.com. The catalogue is available online on www.capethroughbredsales.com

Grant Knowles, MD of CTS, commented: “Make a note of this sale in your phone calendars. If you miss it, you’ll miss out

Entry Form For CTS Ready To Run
& Unbroken Two Year Old Sale 2022

29 October 2022

Entry Form Closing Date 30 July 2022

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM: CTS RTR SALE 2022.pdf

The CTS RTR SALE 2022 will be held at Kenilworth Racecourse.

Please complete the above form IN FULL and return to: entries@cthbs.com

Contact And EFT Details are listed on the Entry form.

Picture: Gavin Lerena just gets up on the Joe Soma-trained Bellevarde (Master Of My Fate) who touched off the Ashley Fortune-trained Un Deux Trois (Coup De Grace), who was having her last start before going to stud (JC Photos)

Lerena Treble, Striker is now within Seven

The highlight of today’s Turffontein Standside meeting was the Paul Peter/Warren Kennedy double which clinched the yard the new SA record.

Peter’s 216 winners have come at a strike rate of 18.46%.

Kennedy moved to 257 winners at a strike rate of 16.51%.

Gavin Lerena is in fine form at present and scored a treble to go to 118 winners at a strike rate of 17.64%.

His first winner was aboard the David Nieuwenhuizen-trained Eyjaffjallajokull (Erupt), who is entered in the Grade 1 Premier’s Champion Stakes on Marshalls World Of Sport Gold Cup day.

Piere Strydom scored his 4th win since his comeback and has done it at a strike rate of 15.38%.

He is now just seven away from the magical 5,500 career winners which will prompt his official retirement.

Today’s Question

Australia’s most prestigious weight for age race The Cox Plate was first run 100 years ago in October 1922, but why was the renewal 40 years ago in 1982 of special significance?

See Answer At The End Of Newsletter

Picture: The great Winx was the first to win The Cox Plate four times. (Racenet).

Fairview Turf Friday July 15 Fields

Today’s Question Answer

In 1982 six-year-old Kingston Town (Bletchingly) became the first horse to win the Cox Plate three years in succession.

The Tommy Smith-trained black gelding was pushed all the way for the 2040m distance by jockey Peter Cook and when being hard ridden in midfield as they approached the short Moonee Valley straight the commentator, running through the field, said, “Kingston Town can’t win.”

However, as the great racing writer Les Carlyon said in his report, “… the horse has lost his early speed. What he hasn’t lost is his sense of navigation. He knows where the winning post is. He knows that it is the only place that matters on the racecourse. And he has a hatred of defeat.”

Kingston Town had 41 career starts and won 30 of them.

He won 14 Group 1 races.

Picture: A painting of the striking black Kingston Town (https://sconevetdynasty.com.au/kingston-town/)

Turf Talk Newsletter – 14 July 2022