Greg Bortz leads in the Vercingetorix gelding Get Impressed (Candiese Lenferna Photography)
On Friday last week the proposed acquisition of Gold Circle by the Hollywood Sportsbook Holdings group (Hollywoodbets) took a step closer to reality with the news of the approval of the underlying transactions by the Competition Tribunal.
This allows Hollywoodbets and its appointed Chairman Designate of Gold Circle, Greg Bortz, to be involved in management and strategic decisions until the process is completed.
Bortz spoke in layman’s terms of the hurdles that still need to be crossed, saying, “We got through a very important one, which is the Competitions Commission. So that’s now through, we’re through the Tribunal. So now we just need Gambling Board consent and then some landlord consent to take over some leases and then we’re there. So, we’re in the final furlong now.”
Greg was speaking after his Justin Snaith-trained Vercingetorix gelding Get Impressed had won the Listed World Pool With Tabgold Darley Arabian over 1600m under Keagan de Melo.
Get Impressed was completing a fine Champions Season campaign which started with an unplaced run over 1900m, but stepped down to a mile he then won a Pinnacle Stakes event at Hollywoodbets Greyville, beating the like of WSB Met winner Double Superlative as well as useful sorts Lady Heist, Queue Wing, Sovereign State and Perfection, and he followed that with a 1,90 length third in the Listed Compendium Insurance Brokers Thukela Handicap over 1600m on Hollywoodbets Durban July day.
On Sunday he jumped from draw two and was backed in to 28/10 favourite before setting the pace and kicking on nicely in the straight to win by half-a-length from Sundance Kid and Money Heist.
Greg said about this three-year-old gelding, “I think he’s turned the corner now. We actually had some pretty high hopes for him in his three year old career. We thought he would win today. But I think there’s more to come next year. He’s a late bloomer and a progressive sort.”
Greg famously splashed out on eight lots at day one of the BSA National Yearling Sale in 2022 and seven of them were by Vercingetorix.
They included both the Hollywoodbets Durban July winner Oriental Charm as well as Get Impressed.
He had acted alone without help at the sale due to what he called “a bee in his bonnet” and added that his girlfriend Gina Goldsmith had constantly reminded him of this.
However, he would now certainly have the last say in that conversation as the batch delivered him his longheld dream of winning his hometown race of the Hollywoodbets Durban July and, to put the cherry on the top, Gina also owns a share in Oriental Charm.
He said his strategy at that Sale had been a “thought out plan” and elaborated, “Vercingetorix has proven himself to be a quality, quality stallion. Whether it was a well thought out plan, I’m not sure we’ve concluded that yet. I don’t know what the return is like on a per horse basis.”
Meanwhile, the Hollywoodbets Durban July winner Oriental Charm is resting on Jodi Peters’ farm in Sun Valley, Midrand.
Greg leaves it to his trainers to decide his horses’ programs and he said the Crawfords had earmarked Oriental Charm for the 2025 WSB Met, with races like the L’Ormarins King’s Plate being taken in on the way.
What was heartwarming to see on Sunday was the easygoing Greg’s approachability for ordinary members of the racing public.
For example a long-time KZN punter thanked him for what he had done for racing and a conversation ensued with Greg then taking it a step further by asking him his name and then saying he would not forget his name and would like to continue the discussion when time allowed.
A press release about the Gold Circle Merger last week elaborates on the ins and outs of it (read below).
Subject to the fulfillment of other outstanding conditions precedent, the deal will unlock a R500 million rescue injection from Hollywoodbets, and a takeover of racing in the holiday province.
Now that Competition Tribunal approval has been received, the most significant outstanding step is the required approval of the KZN Economic Regulatory Authority (KZNERA), which process could take some time.
Hollywoodbets spokesman Basil Thomas told the Sporting Post that news of the approval by the Competition Tribunal was very pleasing, and that the process would continue its course.
He added that whilst the outstanding approval of the KZNERA is critical to the transaction and will be the final step in transferring ownership, the Competition Tribunal approval now allows Hollywoodbets and its appointed Chairman Designate of Gold Circle, Greg Bortz to be involved in management and strategic decisions during the interim period. Most importantly, Hollywoodbets will appropriately invest funds at its own risk to ensure the continuity of horse racing in KZN and the survival of Gold Circle.
“We remain determined to secure the future of the horseracing industry in KwaZulu-Natal and our original plans and intentions remain on track. Naturally, we are hopeful that the KZNERA will recognise the importance of this transaction and will give the acquisition its approval on acceptable terms and conditions. But for now, today’s news is a huge step forward,” concluded Thomas.
