Turf Talk Newsletter – 01 September, 2025

Happy Verse wins the Winter Country Championship 1500 Final (Picture: Wayne Marks)

The Justin Snaith-trained Drakenstein Stud-homebred Vercingetorix colt Happy Verse is the first three-year-old this season to be given a three figure Ability Rating (AR) by Karel Miedema’s Raceform and this augurs well for his classic ambitions.

He jumped well under Aldo Domeyer in the Winter Country Championship 1500 Final at Hollywoodbets Durbanville on Saturday and Aldo Domeyer settled him nicely in midfield with cover.

Domeyer brought the strongly built bay around them exiting the final turn and crept into contention before unleashing him at the 350m mark. He quickened well and then fought off the attentions of the six-year-old Carriacou, to whom he was giving 2kg. He prevailed by 0,75 lengths with the rest of the field beaten 2,75 lengths and more.

It was a fine performance carrying topweight of 61,5kg off a 98 merit rating.

Miedema awarded him a 100 AR.

Domeyer was impressed and said, ““There’s a lot of horse and I like the way he moves. Suffocating his stride wasn’t ideal. He had the class in the end and was toying with the opposition. He gives me the feeling of one of the better horses I have ridden. Hollywoodbets Durbanville is also probably not ideal for him. He has all the ‘utensils’ to become a top sort.”

Happy Verse, a R1, 6 million buy from the 2024 Race Coast Sales Cape Premier Yearling Sale, made it 3 wins from his 4 starts and took his earnings to o R264 219.

Bred by Drakenstein Stud in partnership with Katom and Maine Chance Farms, Happy Verse races for Reon Barnard, Gary Player, and Drakenstein Stud.

Happy Verse is the fourth winner produced by the Giant’s Causeway mare Song Of Happiness, a winning daughter of former Equus Champion Captain’s Lover. A half-sister to multiple Gr 1 winner Ebony Flyer, Captain’s Lover won black-type races on three different continents, including victory in the Avontuur Estate Gr1 Cape Fillies Guineas.

African Prince comes from the clouds to win the Winter Country Championship 1200 Final (Picture: Wayne Marks) 

Justin Snaith not only won the Winter Country Championship 1500 Final, but also the 1200 Final and 1000 Final, while the 2000 Final was won by James Crawford.

African Prince was the most amazing winner of the day in the 1200 Final, which was run over 1250m at the Hollywoodbets Durbanville venue. The Klawervlei Stud-bred Gimmethegreenlight gelding, owned by Greg Bortz and Gina Goldsmith, drifted out from 9/2 to 10/1 and would have been any price halfway down the straight because he had turned for home in last place and at the 300m mark still had eight of the ten horse field to pass. However, once he saw daylight on the outside he took off and scored by 0,30 lengths under JP van der Merwe in a thrilling finish. Commentator Brandon Bailey understandably called the wrong Bortz and Goldsmith horse home as he saw his flying finish late and must have written African Prince off earlier. It was the second career victory of African Prince, who carried 60.5kg off an 80 merit rating. It was a R200,000 race and would have helped recoup some of the R1,5 million purchase price at the 2023 Cape Premier Yearling Sale. African Prince has earned R272,412 to date.

The 1000 Final was won by the Ambiance Stud-bred One World three-year-old filly She’s My World. Muzi Yeni bounced her out from draw two and clinched the rail position in the front, before Peace Of Mind came around from a wide draw of seven and gave her a tow. Yeni remained patient until the 300m mark and thereafter just had to give her one backhander before going on to win by a cosy 0,75 lengths, converting odds of 91/100. The promising filly cost R425,000 at the Cape Premier Yearling Sale and is owned by Messrs J I Bloch, R J Bloomberg, Cameron Braun, E A Braun, A C P Cotterell, Mark & Beti Jones & Dr J A Warner. This was also her second career win and she has earned R349,243 to date.

The 2000 Final was won by the James Crawford-trained Ridgemont-bred Rafeef gelding Heal And Soul. He cost R250,000 at the Cape Premier Yearling Sale. Luyolo Mzothwa had him in midfield from draw six carrying 57,5kg off a 77 merit rating. He ran on resolutely in the straight to convert 10/1 odds and record a second career victory. He has only had seven starts and has earned R209,275.

Cape Breeders

Maine Chance Farms’ top-class sire Querari was responsible for the winner of Saturday’s Listed Betway Spring Spree Stakes winner.

Querari gelding Quantum Theory picked up his second Spring Spree Stakes win on Saturday, with the six-year-old having also prevailed in the 2023 Spring Spree Stakes.

Making his first start for Sean Tarry, Quantum Theory received a superb ride from S’Manga Khumalo in Saturday’s 1200m sprint.

Khumalo timed his challenge to perfection and kept the top-weight going to score by half a length.

Bred by Lammerskraal Stud, Quantum Theory had been purchased by the Wernars family at the recent August Online Auction.

Out of the Tamburlaine mare Control Freak, Quantum Theory (starting for a third time in the Listed Spring Spree Stakes) has won six of 34 starts with his latest win taking his earnings to R1 021 594.

He is one of 45 stakes winners for Querari, South Africa’s Leading Sire of 2YOs in 2018-2019.

That champion son of Oasis Dream ended 2024-2025 in fifth spot on South Africa’s General Sires premiership, with Querari runners earning in excess of R17.933 million last season.

Equus Champion Stayer King Pelles added the KZN Champion Stayer award to his collection of trophies at the KZN Racing awards at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Friday night (Candiese Lenferna Photography)  

Part-owner Ravi Padayachee revealed his Champion Stayer, the Gareth van Zyl-tranied Duke Of Marmalade gelding King Pelles, would be going for the Betway Summer Cup as his first big target this season.

The 122 merit rated gelding stays all day, but has plenty of class too.

He relaxes well in the running and has a fine turn of foot.

This is coupled with a long resolute run in.

He will relish the long Turffontein straight.

King Pelles’ last four victories have been in Gr 3 staying events ranging from 2400m up to 3200m.

However, his previous two wins were both over the Summer Cup trip of 2000m.

Ravi said with a stake of R6 million, the horse had to have a go.

If the pace is on he will be an interesting runner.

The first entries for the Summer Cup are usually in early October.

Sanele Mchunu preparing to commentate a race at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Friday night (Picture Supplied)

SANELE MCHUNU has made giant strides as Race Coast’s Zulu horseracing commentator and has already commentated two Hollywoodbets Durban Julys with the feed going live on Supersport as well as on to the normal Gallop TV stream.

It all started for him when he landed a job as a cameraman for Gold Circle back in 2015. He said, “I was so privileged when I started my job as I was working closely with the presenters Kevin Shea, Warren Lenferna, Deez Dayanand and Sheldon Peters. They were sending me to take their bets, so I started learning about betting and about the horses and I started grasping all the information related to punting. I couldn’t always rely on them to give me tips, so I started studying form so I could take my own bets. I would say I am an average punter. I do have my good days and I do have my bad days. My best moment was when the Candice Dawson-trained filly Sentbydestiny won the Gr 1 Premiers Champion Stakes. She was running against big horses like Tempting Fate, who was the short-priced favourite, but I liked her and picked her and she won paying R25.20 on The Tote.”

Sanele was given an opportunity to be the first Zulu commentator in the country last year and jumped at it.

He said, “I had to teach myself, there was nobody to teach me, but I studied the Zulu commentaries in other sports to find a model that would appeal to a Zulu audience.”

He continued, “I had a number of practice commentaries using my phone to record myself, so I could see if I was doing well. I sent those videos to a couple of people to critique me and they gave me some pointers. Sheldon and Deez were two of the critics. They gave me some good feedback. The critique made it a little bit easier, because I was doing it for the first time and so could afford to go wrong – I was going to learn from my mistakes.”

Sanele’s first live commentary was in May last year and a couple of months later he was doing his first Hollywoodbets Durban July.

He does his commentaries from the old SABC box at Hollywoodbets Greyville, which is directly below the main commentary box used by Craig and Sheldon Peters and is next door to the judge’s box. He said, “It’s the biggest racing event in the whole continent, so obviously you have to be nervous. Doing it for the first time and knowing that you’re going to an audience that has never heard you before, like the Supersport audience, which is a big platform, it was nerve-wracking.”

However, the commentary went very well, particularly as he screamed “ORIENTAL CHARM!” in the final stages and his call as they past the post was that Oriental Charm had beaten Cousin Casey, the one-two in a typically frantic July finish.

“I received some good feedback after that,” he said.

However, he was sweating on the result and explained, “The most challenging aspect of that race was there were two horses with the same silks and the same caps, except the one had a little white pom-pom on which you couldn’t see. They were Cousin Casey and Future Swing and I did manage to call Cousin Casey second, but after the race I jumped up to look at the results board because I was thinking ‘what if it was actually Future Swing and I was calling Cousin Casey?’. I was relieved I got it right.”

By the time the next Hollywoodbets Durban July had come around commentating was starting to become second nature. He is no longer a cameraman and is now dedicated to his new role as commentator and studio presenter. There are Zulu preview shows for all meetings.

He said, “I give it more time now and I study more colours. I follow the horses all over the country to make it easier when it comes to the Champions Season, because there are raiders from Cape Town and from Jo’Burg, so you have to follow racing in the whole country. I know all the colours from around the country now.”

In the 2025 July he once again emphasised the name of the winner in the closing stages. He rattled off the top five in the running at the 200m mark and correctly called the first five past the post, The Real Prince, Eight On Eighteen, Selukwe, Royal Victory and Madison Valley, despite their being some small margins between some of them.

Sanele emphasises the name of the winner in true Zulu soccer-style commentary fashion, a deep guttural roar that makes it very exciting for the listeners.

He said about this year’s Hollywoodbets Durban July, “I think it went well this year, it was for the second time and yes I had to improve. There were two good horses battling each other in the finish, so it was a very nice race to commentate.”

Sanele is fast becoming an institution in KZN racing with his commentaries on Gallop TV for every meeting and other platforms for the big ones. He has become one of the most recognisable faces in KZN racing and is going from strength to strength. He looks to be a fine role model and there are sure to be some potential future commentators who have been inspired by his exciting calls.

Picture: Lanciafiamme gives Marco van Rensburg and Cliffie Miller a double together and also gives Fire Away a double (Pauline Herman Photography)  

Cliffie Miller and Marco van Rensburg combined for a double on the Fairview turf today and the sire Fire Away also had two winners.

Van Rensburg goes to four wins for the season and has achieved it at a strike rate of 11.11%.

Craig Zackey’s single win on Monday combined with his double at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on Sunday sees him on top of the national log on 20 wins, which is two ahead of Serino Moodley and three ahead of Muzi Yeni.

Cliffie Miller goes to three wins for the season at 10%.

Fire Away has had four winners so far this season and is going at a winners to runners percentage of 12.9%, which will improve considering it was at 42% last season.

Which famous horse was Sharon Wright speaking of in the Daily Express when she said, “It’s said his best friend was a parrot who would squawk psalms and populars songs?”

The picture is of the subject (painting: George Stubbs)