Picture: Tony Peter (Picture Supplied To The Citizen).

Tony Peter Steps Into Father Paul’s Big Shoes

The younger Peter has 28 boxes booked at Turffontein and 18 horses lined up to start filling them.

Mike Moon (The Citizen)

The familiar Peter name will be returning to race cards in the near future.

Tony Peter, erstwhile assistant to his champion trainer father Paul, has applied for a training licence and plans to run a moderate-size string out of Turffontein.

Leading owners such as Suzette Viljoen, Lawrence Wernars and Harry Willson have already promised horses to 28-year-old Tony – if he gets the go-ahead from the National Horseracing Authority this week.

Tony sat his training licence written exam on Monday morning and felt it “went well”.

The NHA board was due to decide his fate today (Wednesday) and Tony hopes to immediately pick up the baton from his dad, who shocked the racing world by quitting just days after securing the 2021/22 champion trainer title in July.

‘All I know’

The young man said he was “more excited than nervous” about embarking on his new path.

“Training horses is all I know, having gone into my dad’s yard straight from school at the age of 16. I’m just keen to get started again,” he said.

Tony was a tennis prodigy while at Waterstone College in Kibler Park and played semi-professionally in Europe as a teenager. But tennis bursaries and scholarships to universities and academies in various parts of the world were not enough to turn the youngster’s head from his racing ambitions: “When the bug bites…” he murmurs.

Tony confesses to being “extremely grateful” for the backing of prominent owners, whom he describes as “amazing, not putting any pressure on you, just wanting the horses to be well looked after”.

Such attitudes ultimately bring rewards.

He has 28 boxes booked at Turffontein and 18 horses lined up to start filling them.

“I want to start small and maybe later build up a bit. The key thing is to enjoy it, the horses, the owners, the competition … to do it for the love of the game.”

Paul Peter was like a shooting star in the South African racing firmament – rising from near-obscurity to the very top in just a decade, before vanishing suddenly.

He packed it all in due to health concerns.

“Basically, my yard got too big,” explains Paul. “The financials were not working for me. I had unsustainable overheads, my debtors’ book was big and the stress took a severe toll on me.

“Everyone thinks if you’re number one you’re rolling in money, but it doesn’t always work like that.”

A sensible solution

The amiable champ said it wouldn’t have been fair to hand his son the entire operation as it stood at that time; the sensible solution was to liquidate.

All staff got severance packages and all accounts were settled. Tony has had five months to ponder a return to the game.

“I think he’ll be good for the industry; the young blood that it needs,” said Paul.

“He’s level-headed and not at all arrogant. And, to be honest, he did a lot of the work and played a big part in the success of my yard. He learnt a lot, also spending a time with the old master, Mr Ormond Ferraris.”

Paul said he would have no formal role in Tony’s stable but would be happy to give advice if asked.

Picture: Lucky Houdalakis with the Grand Heritage trophy (JC Photos).

Lucky Has No Long Term Plans For Grand Heritage Exacta Pair

Lucky Houdalakis’ does not believe in long term plans for horses.

Therefore, he is not sure what is in store for his Grand Heritage one-two Duke Of Sussex and Dyce.

He said having a long term plan was usually an agenda to satisfy the connections and could put unnecessary pressure on a horse.

Having a step by step plan allows the horse to do the talking.

He said, “Don’t worry about your own ambitions. We are not the athlete and rather go in with a soldier than a wounded soldier.”

Dyce, who finished second in the Grand Heritage, provides an example of the asset of patience in a horseman.

Lucky referred to the “horrific” injury the William Longsword colt suffered which saw him missing his entire three-year-old season.

The injury required a screw to be inserted in his one fetlock.

Yet here he is displaying that lovely big action again that made him stand out as a two-year-old.

Lucky’s wife Natalie said after Dyce’s impressive win in his second run after the long layoff, “The more time you give them the better they come back.”

Lucky said, “He is sound and his action is beautiful. Everything is good.”

He will be treating Dyce as a younger and more inexperienced horse than a normal four-year-old.

He said, “While all other horses were developing, he was standing still for a year.”

So, he will not be hard on the talented speedster.

Dyce took quite a keen hold in the Grand Heritage, but still stayed all the way to the line, so Houdalakis will still give him another try sometime down the line over further trips than sprints.

Dyce is not the first horse Lucky has nurtured back to top form after a long layoff.

The most famous example is of course J J The Jet Plane and a more recent example is Mr Flood.

Meanwhile, he believes the still progressive five-year-old Duke Of Sussex can now take the step up to feature company.

The Grand Heritage was a plan come together as he was targeted at the race.

Lucky said the Listed Wolf Power over 1600m on January 29 at Turffontein looked like an option.

The Houdalakis yard were thrilled with their other winner on Saturday, the first-timer Master Of My Fate filly Kinky Boots, especially as she is owned by Greg Bortz and Gina Goldsmith.

Kinky Boots was backed in from 25/1 to 8/1 and looked beaten going to the 100m mark. However, Marco van Rensburg managed to change whip hands and with the leg change she found extra and surged past Virgin River to win by quarter of a length with the favourite Celtic Rumours a long-head further back in third.

It was a particularly commendable win due to the soft going, which made it a testing experience for a first-timer.

Lucky, knowing how good she Kinky Boots is, managed to buy her What A Winter half-brother at the BSA November Sale for R160,000.

That could turn out to be a shrewd move.

Picture: Lunga Gila’s career as a licensed trainer did not get off the ground and it is not yet clear whether today’s announcement will change the status quo.

Suspension Lifted On Mano Pandaram’s Horses

NHA Press Release

Further to the Press Release of 2 December 2022 and after conclusion of the investigation, The National Horseracing Authority confirms that the suspension imposed on horses owned by Mr Mano Pandaram is lifted with immediate effect.

The above mentioned press release of December 2 had a back lash as it stated the newly licensed trainer Lunga Gila had relinquished his license, which he vehemently denied in an interview with the Sporting Post.

CLICK HERE to read the seemingly fairytale story of Lunga Gila attaining his own trainer’s license.

CLICK HERE to read the December 2 NHA Press Release.

CLICK HERE to read the subsequent interview with Lunga Gila in the Sporting Post.

Picture: Gimme A Prince (Wayne Marks).

Handicapping Ratings Update

NHA Press Release

Cape Merchants (Handicap) (Grade 2)

GIMME A PRINCE has had his merit rating raised from 108 to114 following his fluent success in the Grade 2 Cape Merchants (handicap) over 1200m at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Sunday 11 December 2022. The Handicappers were unanimously of the opinion that 3rd placed BEREAVE was the most suitable line horse to use when assessing this event, which leaves him unchanged on a mark of 106.

The winner aside, the only other ratings increase was for runner-up WE’RE JAMMING, who was 2 pounds or 1 kg under sufferance at the weights and who carried one pound or half-a-kilo overweight. Consequently, he goes up from 106 to 109.

There were ratings’ drops for no fewer than nine horses. SAFE RETURN is down from 102 to 101, SPEED MACHINE was trimmed from 109 to 108, BARZALONA drops to 103 from 105, MR COBBS is down from 101 to 100, AMBIORIX is down from 100 to 98, TEMPTING FATE goes from 108 to 107, BATTLE FORCE drops from 116 to 114, FORMAGEAR is down to 99 from 103, and lastly GOOD TRAVELLER was cut from 120 to 118.

Picture: Champion Warrior (Wayne Marks)

Champion Warrior, Ensuing Biggest Movers On Gold Rush Log

The Brett Crawford-trained Champion Warrior (Twice Over) was raised three points by the handicapper to 97 after finishing a 2,25 length second to the Justin Snaith-trained four-year-old Master Of My Fate gelding Tout A Fait in a MR 87 Handicap over 1400m at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Sunday.

The merit rated raise saw him rise from joint 14th to joint 9th on the log ahead of the WSB R7.5 million Gold Rush, which will be run over 1600m on WSB Met day.

The Vaughan Marshall-trained Ensuing (William Longsword) was raised five points from an 84 to an 89 after making it three wins in his last four starts last Wednesday.

He made it on to the log for the first time and is in joint 21st position.

However, he might stick to a sprint career having found his niche there.

The biggest downward move on the Gold Rush log was made by Dowser, who had a tough draw in a MR80 Handicap over 1800m on Sunday and failed to fire.

This Visionaire gelding was lowered five points from 92 to 87 and slipped from 18th to joint 25th on the log.

Picture: Candice Bass-Robinson tends to Charles Dickens after he had won the Grade 3 Cape Classic (Wayne Marks).

Charles Dickens The Best I Have Trained – Candice Bass-Robinson

Cape Racing asked Candice how Charles Dickens was doing ahead of the Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas on Saturday.

CLICK HERE to watch the interview.

Picture: Keagan de Melo (Candiese Lenferna).

De Melo Increases Lead With A Double

Keagan de Melo was the only double scorer at today’s Hollywoodbets Greyville Poly meeting.

He goes to 115 win for the season at a strike rate of 20.99%.

He is 41 wins clear of second-placed Richard Fourie and 43 clear of third-placed Muzi Yeni on the national jockeys log.

Picture: The picture gives a clue to the answer.

Today’s Question

Do any Cape Guineas winners have progeny running in Saturday’s Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas?

Click Here To See Vaal Classic Fields, Thursday

NB Please wait a few seconds for fields to appear.

Picture: William Longsword

ANSWER TO TODAY’S QUESTION:

The 2016/2017 season’s Cape Guineas winner William Longsword, who was trained by Vaughan Marshall, has a son running in Saturday’s big race, the Vaughan Marshall-trained gelding Lord William.

William Longsword himself was the son of the Marshall-trained 1999/2000 Cape Guineas winner, Captain Al.

Turf Talk Newsletter – 14 December 2022