The Hollywoodbets Durban July meeting saw great racing on a balmy winter’s day, but was sadly spoilt by an abandonment of the last three races as loadshedding reared its ugly head again (Picture: Hollywoodbets)

NHA Chief Responds To Lights Out Fiasco

The Hollywoodbets Durban July meeting had to be abandoned with still three races to be run for safety reasons after loadshedding had kicked in and this was costly to the industry in more ways than one.

NHA CEO Vee Moodley, in response to the various arguments and rumours that have been circulating on social media, said, “This is a classic case of smoke and fire and people arguing about the smoke. Where there is smoke there is fire and the fire here is the South African problem of Eskom and loadshedding. Without loadshedding there would not have been any arguments. So we should stop fighting with each other about the smoke. Instead the industry leaders should come together and discuss ways and means of preventing this from ever happening again.”

The official NHA stipendiary steward report on the calamity stated:

As the riders proceeded to the start of this race, the racecourse was cast into darkness due to load shedding which commenced at 18h00 in the vicinity of the Hollywoodbets Greyville Racecourse.

Upon enquiry from the Stewards, Gold Circle management advised that load shedding was not planned for the period from 18h00 to 20h00 in the vicinity due to a pre-arrangement with the Metro. It was added subsequently that the electricity was switched off at 18h00, and would then be restored, but that it would take at least thirty minutes for the floodlights to be powered up to facilitate racing. The Stewards called for a meeting with the riders and it was established that they had serious concerns that they had been left in darkness en-route to the start, which in their opinion would potentially put their lives and that of their horses at risk.

The Stewards enquired from Gold Circle if any guarantees could be given that the electricity would be constant and uninterrupted once the floodlights were powered up. The response was that no guarantees could be given. During the meeting there was a further dip in the electricity which raised further concerns from all parties present.

The jockeys were then asked if they would consider waiting until 20h00 until the planned original load shedding schedule had ended, to which they replied in the negative as no guarantees of constant, uninterrupted electricity at this projected time, could be given by any party.

The Stewards, after carefully considering the opinions from the riders, the Veterinary Surgeons and the Gold Circle representatives formed the opinion that the lives of the jockeys and the horses could not be placed at risk in these circumstances and decided that the race meeting should be abandoned in the interest of rider safety, horse welfare and the integrity of racing.

A solution will have be found by industry leaders before the Gold Cup meeting because that also traditionally has a race or two under floodlights and as it is a Hong Kong World Pool event the times of the races will probably not be able to be set to only suit South African audiences.

The Hollywoodbets Durban July finish was a thriller (Picture: via Gold Circle facebook page).

Hollywood Didn’t Deserve The Bouncer After Superb Promotion Of Durban July

As people went through “Arrivals” at King Shaka airport last week, they were bombarded by a bevy of young ladies prancing around like the Spice Girls in their prime. “A book for Saturday’s Hollywoodbets Durban July, sir? Can we give you a pen as well.”

While we all know by now about the fiasco of the abandonment of the last three races, it was a bouncer they weren’t expecting. It mustn’t detract from the immense work done by the sponsors to make sure as many people as possible would know the 2023 July was going to be a special event.

A businessman or businesswoman arriving at the airport will have realised Hollywoodbets had raised sponsorship to a new level.

The previous sponsors, Rothmans, dropped off cigarettes to pubs and clubs in the build-up to the race, but mainly considered the famous race would sell itself.

One of the younger brigade who went the extra mile this year was Hollywoodbets brand and communications manager, Devin Heffer.

Certainly as far as this journo was concerned, he responded quickly to any query. I don’t know what his father is paying him, but it might not be enough.

He told me: “Our take (on the abandonment) is that we were gutted and just really disappointed. We need to do better next time as it was unacceptable. Just a disappointing end to what had been a terrific race meeting.”

When it comes to a person with forthright – and usually correct – reactions to any controversial subject is Karel Miedema. This latest scenario is no exception.

In a blog on Sporting Post, Karel commented “a lot of posters going ape about the power outage, but not a single commenter has anything to say about the fantastic racing we saw on Saturday.”

Amen to that, so lets pick out a few highlights of the nine races which were contested starting with the Hollywoodbets Durban July.

Through all the ups and downs of his career including the disappointment with Jackson in the 2012 July as well as losing the job as trainer for Sabine Plattner, Brett Crawford has presented as a calm and approachable member of the training ranks. The sort of guy you’d want on your side if you strayed into the wrong part of Paris!

Since his run in the Cape Met when he resembled an ambulance trying to weave through cars to get to an accident, Rascallion has been my idea as the likely winner of this year’s July. Once again, bookmaker Lance Michael has pocketed my cash.

Rascallion looked almost sleepy on the way to the start and – when getting a clear run on the outside – there was nothing to come.

Chatting to Grant Knowles – a good friend of Brett’s – after the Cup Trial, I said I was getting more in the corner of Winchester Mansion as he’d won over 2400m and Terrance Millard always maintained you need a mile and a half horse to win the July.

Thus I was put in a tricky position in the selection department for this year’s July but I solved it with the headline in Business Day and Turftalk which stated “Rascallion and Winchester Mansion make most appeal in Durban July.” I guess a case of getting it half right.

As Winchester Mansion and See It Again came together in the drive to the line, my thoughts went to the possibility of an objection which would have suited me as I’d drawn Piere Strydom’s mount in the box I’m in every year.

The head-on soon showed there were no grounds for a protest.

I am still trying to get my head around how Bless My Stars finished third – “you can leave that one out of the quartet” I had told the wife.

But one shouldn’t ignore any July runner trained by Sean Tarry – or bred by Varsfontein Stud for that matter.

Second Base is another runner who got the thumbs down for the quartet, so hats off to Robyn Klaasen that her five year-old secured the fifth purse of R120 000.

No-one seems to have offered any explanation about the poor performance of 8-1 chance, Without Question, who beat only two home. The three year-old was beaten two lengths by See It Again in the Daily News – this time he was 11 lengths adrift.

The previous race – the Gr 2 Golden Horseshoe – had me punching the air like one of those ecstatic premier league footballers celebrating a goal.

Sandringham Summit had cost owner Rakesh Singh R1,7 million when he purchased the colt from Varsfontein at the 2022 National Yearling Sale. Not a big surprise as the mare retired a five-time winner and the colt is a half-brother to Eden Roc, a horse who won the Golden Horseshoe for much-missed owner, Chris van Niekerk.

Turning for home, there looked no more chance of Sandringham Summit winning than a family holiday in Marseilles, but David Nieuwenthuizen had done his job and Calvin Habib’s never-say-die attitude won the day.

The success of the son of Gimmethegreenlight will have both David and Mr Singh dreaming of big race glory next term. Nothing is impossible in this sport – just ask the Magical Lady Syndicate.

Gaynor Rupert, third from left, in conversation with jockey Kabelo Matsunyane before the presentations (Candiese Lenferna Photography).

Gaynor Rupert Talks Of Pride In Drakenstein After Milestone July Exacta

Gaynor Rupert spoke of the pride she had in her stud farm Drakenstein after her miracle homebred horse Winchester Mansion, who broke his neck as a yearling, had won the Hollywoodbets Durban July, beating another Drakenstein Stud-bred, See It Again, in a thrilling finish.

Father and son training pair Brett and James Crawford also worked wonders after travelling the progressive four-year-old Trippi gelding down from Johannesburg for a third time this season, while Kabelo Matsunyane completed his progression to top echelon jockey with a fine ride.

Gaynor Rupert said, “The way Winchester mansion fought, it was such an exciting race.”

She admitted, naturally, to supporting the protagonist running in her own colours.

She continued, “Although I bred both and See It Again is owned by my good friend Nick Jonsson, so I would have been very happy with that result too. In fact I am very happy, because if you think that See It Again is a three-year-old and he carried 3,5kg more in weight, he is a phenomenal racehorse. So we were well weighted, and that is the July, it is a handicap.”

See It Again’s 0,25 length second augurs well for his WSB Met chances.

See It Again finished 4,55 lengths clear of his dual July-winning three-parts brother Do It Again, who added to his legend by completing a sixth July and finishing in the frame for a sixth time.

Gaynor recalled hearing the news that Winchester Mansion had broken a vertebra in his neck when charging into a pole as a yearling.

“I remember thinking, oh well that is just too bad and he will never race.”

However, Winchester Mansion proved to be a model patient and was happy to stand quietly in his box looking over the door for three-and-a-half months. He was also happy to feed from a container above his head, because he was not allowed to put his head down for extended periods.

Winchester Mansion recovered well, but was no longer a sales prospect.

Gaynor elaborated, “We’ve been so lucky, all of our great horses could not be sold. Charles Dickens could not be sold, because he displaced his palate and he still does it, but it just doesn’t bother him in running. Safe Passage didn’t reach his reserve. Trip Of Fortune didn’t reached his reserve. So those are our four big horses. I have just been so lucky.”

Drakenstein have likely wrapped up both the national breeders and owners championships.

The July one-two took Drakenstein-breds’ total stakes earnings to R26,512,913, which is R2,668,300 clear of reigning champions Wilgerbosdrift and Mauritzfontein.

The July win took Drakenstein, in defense of the National Owners Championship, to R15,439,288 in stakes earnings, R1,712,788 clear of the Hollywood Syndicate.

Gaynor said, “I am so proud of my stud, seriously. It’s hard to win the Breeders Championship because I have less horses than some and I’ve got wonderful opposition who really know their breeding and breed such excellent horses. So for us to have a season like this one … I never thought I could win the Breeders Championship, to be honest. I thought I could maybe win the owners. But its very important to me.”

Drakenstein Stud, remarkably, has only been in existence for about 20 years.

Gaynor recalled her early breeding years, “I had horses standing with Mick Goss for years. Then when we got L’Ormarins my husband said he was taking out vines on the lower slopes and I should bring those 12 horses to L’Ormarins. I then started learning about breeding, because that aspect of racing I never knew much about.”

From those 12 horses has burgeoned the current most successful big race stud in the country.

This season Drakenstein smashed their own record by so far having 19 individual stakes winners of 33 races (beating the 18 individual winners of 25 races last season).

Gaynor said Saturday was up with her best ever days on the racecourse, although she spoke of Charles Dickens’ Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Gold Challenge win as having been at weight for age level, not to mention his brilliant victory in the sire producing event, the Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas.

However, Saturday’s win did surpass her July victory with Legislate in 2014, because she bought the latter in training whereas Winchester Mansion was a homebred. He is also by the sire who really turned Drakenstein around, Gaynor’s beloved Trippi.

It was a first July win for Trippi.

It was an equally great result for the Crawfords.

In a touching moment afterwards the tears flowed openly from James as he embraced his Dad.

Brett, who had had four July places before but never a win, said, “I really am a bit speechless, to be honest. A long term plan. A lot of doubters and ‘nay-sayers’, but we knew what we were doing with him. We stuck to our plan. Credit to James and his team, they’ve done an incredible job. You know, when you’ve got a guy like Strydom on your inside, it’s going to be a hellava job to get past him. All credit to Kabelo, he’s had a phenomenal season. He rode a great race and he set himself a future.”

It was Matsunyane’s first Gr 1 win.

He rousted his mount from the off and in a rough scramble for early position got him handy.

He had to then settle him and managed to slot him in behind stablemate Time Flies, who was one out and one back.

In the straight he had to switch inward to avoid Dave The King, who started angling for the outside.

He then joined See It Again at the 250m mark and a thrilling tussle ensued.

Kabelo said, “When he drifted towards me, I had my stick on the right and knew I had an advantage as my horse can hang in. I changed my stick back to the left, where I knew Winchester would give me more kick and that’s exactly what he did.”

Kabelo Matsunyane and Winchester Mansion on their way to victory at the Durban July. Picture: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images

Horse Power Drives Kabelo Matsunyane To The Top At Durban July

The young jockey pipped his hero to land the biggest prize in the SA game.

Mike Moon (The Citizen)

“Full credit to that young man there!” That was among the first comments trainer Brett Crawford blurted out after his horse Winchester Mansion won the 2023 Hollywoodbets Durban July at Greyville on Saturday.

Crawford was referring to jockey Kabelo Matsunyane, who drove the four- year-old gelding to victory in one of the more memorable finishes the great race has seen in its 127-year history.

“He’s had phenomenal success this season and he rode a great race!” added the trainer. “He has set himself for a big future.”

Matsunyane could hardly have had a tougher challenge in the closing stages of the R5-million July, with master jockey Piere Strydom alongside him. Strydom was vying for the lead on race favourite See It Again – a proven finisher of the first order.

“When he came to join us, I had my stick on the right. I knew if he hung out I could change my stick to the left and get a bit more out of my horse,” explained the young rider who graduated from the SA Jockey Academy less than a year ago.

That is some cool thinking under high pressure.

In the end, Matsunyane and Winchester Mansion prevailed by 0.25 lengths. Of course, See It Again, a year younger, was carrying 3.5kg more – which in the end probably made the difference. As they say, you don’t have to be the best horse to win the July, just the best weighted.

“Whoooo! We did it!” exclaimed the young man as he faced the TV cameras.

In an interview way back in 2019, Matsunyane was asked who his favourite jockey was.

“Mr Piere Strydom. He has been one of the biggest inspirations and role models in my career this far. His hard work and dedication have allowed him to ride at such top level in the industry and achieving goals such as winning the Durban July and riding abroad. I admire his work ethic and would like to aspire to be as successful as him one day.”

He might not be quite there yet, but Saturday – and a fateful duel with his hero – was a giant leap forward.

Matsunyane had no background in horse racing before 2016, when he was in matric at Khutlo Tharo Secondary School on the Highveld. Back then, his father took him to a careers expo in Sandton. There, he visited the booth of the SA Jockey Academy, where his diminutive size immediately piqued interest.

He filled in the forms for the world-renowned school at Summerveld near Durban. He then asked his dad to take him to the races to see what it was all about.

One visit to the Vaal racecourse was all it took; this was the job for him.

“I believe everyone needs a deeply seated passion in their life. Not a hobby but a consuming, addictive passion,” Kabelo writes on his Linked In page.

“I found my passion and purpose when introduced to the sport of horse racing.”

In his second year in the academy, the star pupil was selected to spend a month at the British Racing School. In his third year, he rode in France in a Future Racing Stars race and finished fourth.

While never challenging to be champion apprentice, Kabelo quietly won admirers in the training ranks, many of whose names he burbled out in thanks as he stood victorious on the Greyville turf on Saturday.

Since his graduation from the academy in August 2022, the young man has truly hit his straps in the irons, so to speak. He has racked up winner after winner and currently stands at seventh on the national log. This is a notable achievement at his age, earning him plaudits as the most improved jockey in South Africa.

Winchester Mansion was his 101st winner for the 2022/23 season.

“I love the power of how the horse has allowed me to take the reins and work towards achievements I had never even thought of before,” he says.

See It Again and Piere “Striker” Strydom on the way to the start on Saturday (Candiese Lenferna Photography).

Striker Had No Excuses For HDJ Favourite’s Defeat

Piere Strydom offered no excuses in running for the Hollywoodbets Durban July favourite See It Again and felt he could only have done better with a faster pace and with less weight.

The Michael Roberts-trained star Twice Over three-year-old colt was attempting to emulate Big City Life (2009) and Legislate (2014) as horses to have won all of the Gr 1 Cape Derby, the Gr 1 Daily News 2000 and the Gr 1 Durban July.

However, in a thrilling ding-dong eyeball-to-eyeball tussle from the 250m mark with the Brett Crawford-trained Winchester Mansion he was unable to find extra when it counted.

He had to settle for an official quarter-of-a-length second.

Dave The King went through the 1000m mark (1200m from the start) in a time of 72,04 seconds.

The going was also good to soft, so Dave The King was setting fractions that could be considered too fast.

However, at the halfway stage there must have been a good five lengths back to the second-placed horse, whilst See It Again was sitting two horses further back from there.

Strydom appears to believe that by the time they had hit the straight his horse had gone a touch slower than ideal.

He said, “I had the run of the race, a beautiful position. At the top of the straight there was quite a bit of scrimmaging and they were doing one another and gaps opened on the inside. I slipped through and obviously got there very quickly and very easily. I had to then nurse him and nurse him. But when I asked him he gave me and I thought maybe we would win, but the other horse was just coming back.”

He continued, “I think there are two things that could maybe have been better for us. Firstly, if the pace was faster. Then I would have run at him and not tried to get there quickly. Secondly, the weight. How does a young three-year-old give an older horse weight. That is something the handicappers need to look at. I know you can only give a handicapping horse weight according to performance, but how does a young three-year-old give a lightly raced four-year-old weight? It should have been the other way around.”

In the defense of the handicappers See It Again in a ten race career went into the race as the winner of both of the most prestigious three-year-old middle distance Grade 1s in the country, whilst Winchester Mansion, in a 15 race career, went in as a twice Gr 3 winner.

Furthermore, the margin of defeat was only a quarter-of-a-length, so had the weight been the other way around it would have seen See It Again romping home unopposed.

Nevertheless, it provided another example of the best horse not winning the race everybody in the country most wants to win, and that can be a bitter pill to swallow.

That is not a suggestion the conditions should be changed, because making it weight for age would probably rob the race of the enormous intrigue surrounding it every season.

Strydom continued, “Otherwise I can’t complain.”

Asked whether he felt he was still in with a chance in the closing stages, Strydom was very forthright in his reply.

He said, “I could feel him coming, so I thought I would try and intimidate him a bit. It didn’t work, the horse was too good for us.”

He added philosophically, “If you asked me before the race, ‘How would you want the race to be run?’, I would have replied the way it worked out for me, so I have no excuses.”

Striker was full of praise for trainer Michael “Muis” Roberts.

He said, “I must say Muis turned the horse out beautifully. He was actually better this time than he was last time (for the Daily News 2000). He was more relaxed and less sweaty. He did a great job and the form shows it too. We beat Dave The King and Without Question out of sight whereas with the weight turnaround they should have finished on top of one another.”

It would have been a fairytale had Strydom managed to win the race, because the now 57 year-old rider had only come out of retirement for an eye issue in order to reach the 5500 career winners mark. Some good big race rides were then offered to him, including See It Again. Having openly said last year’s July was his last ride in the big race, he was now back again to have another crack at joining Anton Marcus as the only one to have ridden five winners in the country’s premier horse race.

He revealed, “Yes it would have been a fairytale and at the 300m I actually thought, ‘can you believe it, I’m going to maybe crack that fifth one’, but to my horror something came on my outside. Then I knew it was a race and was just hoping my horse would be better or hold on, but it was not to be.”

Piere said he believed See It Again would come back for Gold Cup day to run in the Gr 1 Hong Kong World Pool Champions Cup.

The legendary rider said that would likely be his swansong.

Do It Again says farewell to an adoring Hollywoodbets Greyville crowd (Supplied by Snaith Racing).

Farewell To The Legend Do It Again

Do It Again added to his legend on Saturday by not only becoming the only horse to run in the Hollywoodbets Durban July six times but by making the frame for the sixth time.

The Justin Snaith-trained eight-year-old Twice Over gelding’s July record is 2018 first, 2019 first, 2020 third, 2021 fourth, 2022 fourth, 2023 fourth and that is not to mention how unlucky he was in 2021.

His July performances at the weights have been: 2018 best performed runner, 2019 best performed runner, 2020 best performed runner, 2021 best performed runner, 2022 third best performed runner, 2023 fourth best performed runner.

Do It Again was allowed his own special farewell canter past after the big race on Saturday and was given a rousing ovation.

Part-owner Nick Jonsson summed it up when asked after the Daily News 2000 whether the great horse’s three-parts brother See It Again could perhaps be even better than him, he replied without hesitation, “Do It Again is the best horse I have ever owned … I will never own a horse as good as him.”

Snaith Racing have compiled a fitting instagram tribute video of Do It Again which can be viewed below:

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

Trip Of Fortune on the way to the start under late substitute rider Raymond Danielson after Aldo Domyer was booked off ill (Candiese Lenferna Photography).

Trip Of Fortune Third Best Performed Runner In July

South African sports fans must be among the most bandwagon sub-cultures in the world and accordingly large numbers often cotton on to a thread without any of them having checked the facts.

One of the threads doing the rounds after the Hollywoodbets Durban July is that Winchester Mansion was able to win the big race only because the entry of Trip Of Fortune enabled him to carry a lesser weight than he would otherwise have done and it was thus a manipulated result.

Completely false.

In fact if Trip Of Fortune had not been supplemented it would have been easier for Winchester Mansion.

Without his supplementary entry the weights would have been set on Zapatillas who would have then been scratched on the Wednesday after the setting of the weights.

So without Trip Of Fortune being supplemented Winchester Mansion would have carried 54,5kg and See It Again would have carried 58,5kg.

With Trip Of Fortune in the race Winchester Mansion carried 53kg compared to the 56,5kg of See It Again.

So with Trip Of Fortune in the race he received only 3,5kg from See It Again instead of 4kg … and that is not to mention the view of some that it is harder for a three-year-old to give weight to older horses when carrying a big weight than when carrying a lesser weight.

Drakenstein’s racing manager Kevin Sommerville was transparent a couple of days before the race about the reason for Trip Of Fortune’s supplementary entry.

He said it gave Drakenstein one more runner and the opposition one less, which therefore gave them a mathematically better chance of winning the race.

The decision proved justified because Trip Of Fortune, who finished a 5,90 length seventh carrying 60kg, was the third best performed runner in the race and he was the second home of the five Drakenstein Stud homebreds.

Idabelle (The United States) is the second of the Khumalo/Smith treble of winners (Pauline Herman Photography).

Smith Forges Clear After Khumalo Scores Him A Treble

S’Manga Khumalo rode a treble for Gavin Smith on the Fairview poly today and this saw the latter going three clear of Alan Greeff in the intriguing race for the East Cape Trainers title.

Louis Mxothwa scored a double.

Smith is now on 116 wins for the season achieved at a strike rate of 9.97%.

Khumalo is on 160 wins for the season at 15.83%.

Mxothwa is on 122 wins at 14.84%.