Picture: The connections of Captain’s Ransom and Jet Dark accept the KZN Horse Of The Year award together (Candiese Lenferna Photography).

Molly Has A Go At KZN Awards Panelists

Only King’s Plate Deadheat Will Vindicate KZN Vote

There’s something about a shared award which – in a word – is unsatisfactory. However, this is exactly what occurred at the KZN Racing Awards with the judges unable to separate Queen’s Ransom and her stablemate, Jet Dark.

In a Court of Law, there’s no such thing as being half-guilty. If you are found guilty you are off to jail, if not you walk free.

Sure, it wasn’t an easy call between the two Justin Snaith stars but – to their credit – the judging panel for the Equus awards didn’t sit on the fence and voted for Captain’s Ransom.

It’s the same story for the annual prestigious “BBC Sports Personality Of The Year” – an award which is eagerly awaited by sports fans in the United Kingdom in December.

In 2021, the voting panel had two females with huge credentials for the award – Rachael Blackmore the first female to win the Grand National and tennis star, Emma Raducanu. They decided on the latter.

Blackmore still took a trophy home by securing the “World Sports Star Of The Year”, but the talented jockey will have been disappointed not to take the BBC award.

There are those who feel Jet Dark deserved the trophy at both Equus and KZN – it’s interesting that Cape Breeders opted for the Queen’s Plate winner at their awards evening.

Of course. the hugely exciting prospect currently doing the rounds on the racing grapevine is that Captain’s Ransom and Jet Dark might clash in the L’Ormarins King’s Plate in early January. The only way the KZN verdict can be vindicated is if there’s a dead-heat!

The reason this meeting between the two Cape stars – it wouldn’t happen in the Coolmore camp – is a possibility is because both horses are owned by sporting owners. Neither would duck the challenge if Snaith gave the green light.

The safe route for Captain’s Ransom would be to let her attempt to retain her Paddock Stakes title. It would be another Gr 1 win to notch on her belt but – like Baaeed going for the Champion Stakes instead of the Arc – there will be those who feel the big challenge had been sidestepped.

It seems likely that Sean Tarry’s Triple Tiara winner, Rain In Holland, will head for the Paddock Stakes. The word from the former champion trainer is that – after her operation – the filly is back in full work and moving well.

Tarry has dispelled rumours that he intends to relocate to the Cape.

Commenting on social media, Tarry said: “Cape Town have upped their game and it looks attractive to be there for the season. And – in time to come – maybe the establishment of a satellite yard remains a possibility.”

“But Randjesfontein is my base and we have always done well and been able to attack other centres from there. I’m not going anywhere.”

*********

No question that the decision to not run Baaeed in Sunday’s Arc De Triomphe has robbed the five million euro race of its leading actor, but – like a good film – the supporting cast can make it a memorable event.

With 2021 Epsom Derby winner, Adayar, heading to Ascot to take on Baaeed on October 15, pundits are battling to settle on the likely winner of Europe’s most important race.

Here are the leading candidates:

LUXEMBOURG: The ruling favourite as a result of his win in the Irish Champion Stakes. Trainer Aidan O’Brien convinced his charge will love the step up to a mile and a half.

ALPINISTA: Done everything right this season with five Gr 1 wins across three countries. Detractors point to the fact that three of those successes came in Germany while she was taking on her own sex when winning the Yorkshire Oaks. Now she takes on the boys!

VADENI: Connections feel the ground will suit their runner better than Ascot and it needs remembering he was given the same rating as Derby winner, Desert Crown, when winning the Prix du Jockey Club. Doesn’t have to travel which is a plus but is trying a mile and a half for the first time.

TITLEHOLDER: Japan’s big hope and unbeaten this year. Obviously a class performer but not easy to judge against his European rivals.

TORQUATOR TASSO: Bidding for an Arc double and will have Frankie Dettori in the saddle. Only one win from four starts this year so faces no easy task for a repeat win.

MISHRIFF: With Adayar heading for Ascot, William Buick may partner this globe-trotting star.

AL HAKEEM: Stablemate of Vadeni and trainer Jean-Claude Rouget has told the media he considers the colt as “good enough to take on the best.” Appeals as the best outsider.

* So what’s this writer’s selection? I will be studying the form in depth and my top choice will be revealed in an Arc preview on channel 240 on Sunday. The race is off at 16h05 (SA time).

However, I am suggesting one bet at Longchamp – Kyprios looks the part for the Prix du Cadran.

Picture: S’Manga Khumalo after winning the Hollywoodbets Durban July for the second time (Gallo Images).

Khumalo’s Plea To The KZN Provincial Legislature

As a youngster growing up in KwaMashu, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), I never would have dreamed that I would someday be two-time winner of Africa’s greatest horseracing event – the Hollywoodbets Durban July and two-time South African champion jockey.

Smanga Khumalo writes that horseracing has been a door into a life I could not have imagined.

I can only hope that this same door will lead many young, black people to even greater success than mine. But this door may soon be shut closed by a well-intentioned yet ill-conceived legislative measure now under consideration in the KwaZulu-Natal provincial legislature.

A champion! Smanga Khumalo is a serious competitor (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)

The problem is a proposal in the Gaming and Betting Tax Amendment Bill that would divert funding from the province’s racecourse operator, Gold Circle, to a soon-to-be-established ‘Transformation Fund’.

Currently, Gold Circle receives 3% of the proceeds from betting on the races. The Bill proposes to cut this to 1.6% with the rest being allocated to the fund. As the name of the fund suggests, the purpose of the proposal is to advance transformation in the horseracing industry. This would be a wonderful suggestion but for one snag: transformation is already being done by the best-placed stakeholder, and this proposal would undermine that work.

My own success is a testament to the work the industry already does to advance transformation. I was first spotted by a talent scout, not at an expensive private school, but at Mzuvele Secondary School. The man was looking for potential jockeys, and my small frame – which hadn’t always been an advantage – finally worked in my favour. At just 14 or 15, I didn’t have any plans, but when this opportunity came, I took it with both hands and haven’t looked back since.

After a successful interview, my journey began. I read a lot in those early days, and was inspired by the story of the late Gift Funeka, the first black jockey to ride in the Durban July. As it happened, he was also from KwaMashu. The South African Jockey Academy was very helpful in assisting with my application and I was lucky to have my mother’s support in this pursuit.

The first time I saw a horse was terrifying. Imagine yourself as a tiny young man standing next to a 500kg animal. But it was also exhilarating. Starting in 2000, I embarked on a five-year apprenticeship that involved early mornings, a lot of riding, mucking out stables, and learning to take care of horses.

To receive this training at no cost was a life-changing opportunity. There were only a few black guys then; there are many more today. A new generation of black professional jockeys are coming up behind me, and I hope the likes of myself and Gift Funeka will inspire many more. But this journey is only possible because many people are giving generously of their time and expertise to train youngsters.

Gold Circle is a huge financial supporter of the Academy and of many other stakeholders in the industry in KZN.

It uses the funding it receives from the tax on winning punters’ fixed odds bets to support all these stakeholders in the industry, including rural racing. Go to any track and see the number of black racegoers, jockeys, grooms, employees, and small business owners.

This is where the transformation and development are actually happening.

It is because of Gold Circle’s investment in institutions across the industry that I grew to become a skilled jockey and won the Hollywoodbets Durban July for the second time in 2022. And it is also Gold Circle’s funding of the prize money that makes this a viable professional option for anyone other than the rich.

I absolutely agree that the transformation and development of the horseracing industry in KZN is important, but I am living proof of the fact that the industry is capable of, and is, transforming by itself without a government-run Transformation Fund.

In fact, the South African Jockey Academy was the first non-racial secondary school in the country. My personal experience demonstrates that more than 20 years ago, the Academy was already scouting for young black people to train to become professional jockeys. Today, more than three quarters of the apprentice intake at the Academy are black people.

All this only begs the question, what will a Transformation Fund do that Gold Circle isn’t, and what additional value will such a fund bring to this effort?

If it fails to enhance transformation, the loss to the province will be great. The July brings hundreds of millions of Rands into the province and, as we recover from the blows of the past three years, we need all the revenue we can get to rebuild our province and protect the vital jobs we have.

But the cost of implementing this unnecessary intervention won’t only be measured in rands and cents. It will also be measured in opportunities lost. Drastic cuts to Gold Circle’s revenue will force it to cut its expenses. If this happens, the Academy and so many other stakeholders in KZN – grooms, trainers, breeders, and others – will suffer, leading to fewer races, fewer quality horses, and less opportunity for me to do what I love.

And if all this leads to the collapse of racing in KZN, we may never see another child from KwaMashu rise in this industry again; nor from Umlazi, Ntuzuma or any of the province’s rural communities. This isn’t hyperbole; a similar proposal in Gauteng saw that province’s racecourse operator enter business rescue within a year of its implementation. On this issue, the stakes are high with very limited upside, if any. Any gambler will tell that this isn’t a bet we should take.

S’manga Khumalo is a South African champion jockey and two-time winner of the Hollywoodbets Durban July. Article reproduced from www.iol.co.za.

Picture: Torquator Tasso won the Arc at odds of 72-1 last season Christophe Archambault (AFP Getty Images)

Confirmed Runners, Riders And Draw For The 2022 Arc – Plus An Early Tip

By James Stevens & Lewis Porteous (Racing Post)

Frankie Dettori and Torquator Tasso will need to break a 45-year hoodoo to retain Sunday’s Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe after being on the receiving end of a nightmare draw in stall 18.

The final field and draw was revealed on Thursday and last year’s winner was given the tricky challenge of emulating Alleged’s first of two Arc wins in 1977 to retain the prize. In 2012, Orfevre was able to get within a neck from the same gate but the German-trained runner has drifted in the betting for his Arc defence following the allocation.

Dettori will partner Torquator Tasso and connections can at least draw inspiration from his memorable Arc win on Golden Horn in 2014, where he overcame stall 14.

Meanwhile, the draw was more favourable for leading contenders Alpinista, Westover and Luxembourg and they will line up for Sunday’s €5 million contest next to each other in stalls six, seven and eight.

Vadeni and Titleholder were subject to support in the betting after being allocated stalls two and ten respectively.

John and Thady Gosden’s two representatives were unlucky with their slots as Mostahdaf and Mishriff will emerge from stalls 16 and 17.

Mishriff, who will be partnered by William Buick for the first time, drifted to 28-1 (from 20) with bet365 but co-trainer Thady Gosden was upbeat on the chances of the three-time Group 1 winner.

“Obviously we’re drawn wider than ideal but, as we’ve seen before, it’s possible to get a good enough position given a bit of luck from a wide draw. We’ll just have to see how they break,” he said.

“Mishriff has come out of the Irish Champion [Stakes] in good form. The ground at Leopardstown was just a little bit tacky and holding for him. They’re due some rain at Longchamp but hopefully they don’t get as much as previous years and it doesn’t turn too soft or too tacky.

“He’s a horse with plenty of speed and the Longchamp mile and a half should suit him. He doesn’t necessarily want a stiff mile and a half but he’s won over that trip in Dubai.”

Gosden added of 50-1 chance Mostahdaf: “He took the race by the horns when winning the September Stakes and he quickened up pretty smartly. He wouldn’t want the ground going too deep but seems to be in good form. The Arc has always been under consideration and he’s a horse who improves throughout the year.”

Japan’s leading hope Titleholder is expected to make the running and will come from stall ten while the William Haggas-trained Alenquer will occupy the same stall 12 in which Torquator Tasso emerged from 12 months ago before causing an upset at 72-1.

Similar to last year’s winner, Alenquer is one of the outsiders of the 20 runners who made the cut on Thursday – La Parisienne, True Testament and Le Destrier failed to get in – but jockey Tom Marquand was hopeful he could outrun a general price of 100-1.

The jockey said: “It’s not the best draw in 12 and it’s not the worst. If you’re too low and don’t break as well as you want it can be a nightmare, so I guess it does give us a few options.

“He wants soft ground and it’s looking like a mile and a half is where he wants to be. His run in the Arc last year was more than respectable and he’s subsequently won a Group 1 on soft ground. If he was to bring his A game, hopefully he can be competitive.

“Arguably his best form has been on wet, soft ground and if there’s a big dump of rain, that would suit us. It’s tacky ground he doesn’t want.”

Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe runners and riders

1 Mishriff (17) William Buick

2 Torquator Tasso (18) Frankie Dettori

3 Mare Australis (19) Bauyrzhan Murzabayev

4 Sealiway (15) Mickael Barzalona

5 Alenquer (12) Tom Marquand

6 Deep Bond (5) Yuga Kawada

7 Broome (14) Wayne Lordan

8 Stay Foolish (20) Christophe Lemaire

9 Mostahdaf (16) Jim Crowley

10 Mendocino (1) Rene Piechulek

11 Titleholder (10) Kazuo Yokoyama

12 Bubble Gift (13) Olivier Peslier

13 Grand Glory (9) Maxime Guyon

14 Alpinista (6) Luke Morris

15 Vadeni (2) Christophe Soumillon

16 Al Hakeem (4) Cristian Demuro

17 Onesto (11) Stephane Pasquier

18 Westover (7) Rob Hornby

19 Do Deuce (3) Yutaka Take

20 Luxembourg (8) Ryan Moore

Arc verdict and 1-2-3 prediction

1 Vadeni

2 Luxembourg

3 Alpinista

Picture: Hoedspruit (Pauline Herman Photography)

Hoedspruit Could Spring A Surprise In Challenge

Danie Toerien (The Citizen)

Six-time winner Hoedspruit will be making his Highveld debut on Saturday in the Grade 2 Topbet Mike O’Connor Joburg Spring Challenge, where he will have to answer two very important questions.

The first is whether he will take to the Turffontein Inside track, and the second is whether he will cope with the altitude.

Trained by Justin Snaith, Hoedspruit is already a Group 2 and Group 3 winner, and with a merit rating of 116, there is no question about his class.

“Hoedspruit is with Mike de Kock. He’s been up on the Highveld for about a month and a half,” said Jonathan Snaith on behalf of Snaith racing when asked whether this son of Legislate had acclimatised and adapted to the altitude.

“But you never know. Some horses adapt better than others and we are hoping he’s one of them, but you never know until they run how they will take to the altitude.”

According to Jonathan, their expectations are rather conservative.

“This is just a prep run for the Summer Cup,” he said. “He’s about 80% ready at this stage, so it’s just a prep.

“If he runs in the money we’ll be delighted.”

Hoedspruit has, however, surprised in a prep run before.

At the beginning of last season, he surprisingly won a prep run at Durbanville over 1250m, beating a small but strong field which included the likes of Zapatillas, No Laying Up and stable companion African Rain, while going off at 7-1. That run was ahead of the Listed Algoa Cup at Fairview in Gqeberha, where Hoedspruit beat Find Me Unafraid by 2.50-lengths.

“It was a very good field that day,” said Jonathan about the Durbanville run.

“This time, it’s important to note that he hasn’t been on the grass yet. He should be a run short of his best, and it’s just to give him an opportunity to get used to the altitude and the new surroundings.

“He’s not raced at Turffontein. The plan is that he races in the Summer Cup after this and then return to Cape Town for the Cape Summer Season.”

Saturday’s 1450m seems the perfect distance for Hoedspruit to spring another surprise.

“He’s got a lot of speed,” said Jonathan. “We want to start him over a shorter distance because he has to acclimatise further. The shorter the distance to start off with, the better, and then we can build from there.

“We don’t want to put him under too much pressure too early, because that increases the chances of something going wrong, especially if they’re not 100% fit yet.”

Hoedspruit does top the Computaform speed ratings in Saturday’s field.

Asked what the riding instructions for jockey Craig Zackey on Saturday could entail, Jonathan responded: “Just ride him confidently, and most importantly just sit on him. Because he’s coming off a break and it’s his first run in Johannesburg, we don’t want him to go too hard too early. He should get a relaxed early ride and the rider should make sure he’s covered off the pace. Hopefully he runs on strongly, which will set him up for a good performance in the Summer Cup.”

Jonathan also had some advice for the betting public.

“Punters out there have to be wary of horses from Cape Town having their first run in Johannesburg. Historically they don’t run to form first time out.

“I would be surprised if he won, but I wouldn’t be shocked. He’s a good horse. He’s got the class to win.”

Hoedspruit was 12-1 in early betting on Wednesday.

Full betting: 16-10 William Robertson; 4-1 Mercantour; 11-2 Puerto Manzano; 8-1 Sovereign Spirit; 9-1 After The Rain; 12-1 Hoedspruit, Forever Mine; 15-1 Bingwa, Team Gold; 22-1 Prince Of Fire; 40-1 Zillzaal.

Picture: Good friends Pomp And Power (Vercingetorix) and Richard Fourie will keep their partnership intact in Saturday’s Hollywoodbets Matchem Stakes (Candiese Lenferna).

Commentator Smit Discusses The Hollywoodbets Matchem And Diana Stakes

CLICK HERE TO WATCH ROUVAUN SMIT’S ANALYSIS

Picture: An aerial shot of the Birdsville racecourse (TheGuardian.com)

Iconic Racemeeting In Australian Desert Been Going Since 1882

Darren England/AAP ( TheGuardian.com)

For one weekend each year, Birdsville’s normal population of 115 people swells to a crowd of more than 6,000 when its annual horse race comes to town. Birdsville is situated on the edge of the Simpson Desert, 1,590km from Brisbane but that distance doesn’t deter the horse racing fans and fun seekers who descend on the town for the famous two-day event.

The following pictures show some of the races, the winning jockey holding the Birdsville Cup, the festive crowd enjoying themselves, the dressed-up-as-a-beer-race and the focal point after the races, the Birdsville Hotel.

The pictures above are of the 2017 renewal.

This year saw the 139th running of the Birdsville Cup and Barcaldine trainer Todd Austin won the Aus$43,800 1600m race in comfortable fashion with Echo Point (Sebring), ridden by female jockey Brooke Richardson.

It had been 950 days since the Todd Austin-trained French Hussler had won the 2019 version of the iconic desert feature, the last time the race had been run due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.

So understandably the return of the Birdsville Cup this year in April meant a lot to many people.

Just as he did in 2019, Austin put the polish on the winner Echo Point.

It was the Barcaldine trainer’s third Birdsville Cup victory after also winning the 2013 edition with Primed.

Starting at one of the shortest quotes in the history of the race, the $1.18 favourite was given an absolute peach of a ride by Brooke Richardson.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH REPLAY OF THIS YEAR’S RACE

CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT THIS YEAR’S RENEWAL

Picture: The Mike and Adam Azzie-trained Far Away Winter (What A Winter) made it three wins in just five career starts and looks to be going places. He clinched a double for the Azzie/Diego de Gouveia combination (JC Photos).

Doubles for Degouveia/Azzie Zackey/Houdalakis and Khumalo and Botes/Vosloo

Diego Degouveia and Mike and Adam Azzie combined for a double today at Turffontein Inside and so did Craig Zackey and Lucky Houdalakis.

S’Manga Khumalo and the Barend Botes and Yolandie Vosloo yard also scored doubles.

Khumalo has ridden 38 winners at 17.76% and is in third place on the national log, 14 winners behind Keagan de Melo.

De Gouveia is on ten winners at 27.03%.

Zackey is on five winners at 7.69%

The Botes/Vosloo yard are on eight winners at 25%.

The Azzies are on seven winners at 30.43%.

Houdalakis is on six winners at 15.38%.

Today’s Question

Timeform rated Frankel 147, which is the highest ever Timeform rating.

However, the panel of Racehorse handicappers from the major racing nations of Europe who met to determine the International Classifications i.e. the annual ratings of thoroughbred racehorses who had run in Europe, gave Frankel a 140, which is also the highest ever such rating.

Which Arc winner, rated 140 by Timeform, achieved the second highest international classification for a European horse of 138?

Picture: A photograph of the subject (Sporthorse-data.com)

Fairview Poly Fields

Picture: Dancing Brave winning the 1986 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. The 1986 Arc was recently voted the greatest ever horse race by Racing Post readers. (Trevor Jones).

Today’s Question Answer

Dancing Brave (11 May 1983 – 2 August 1999) was an American-bred, British-trained thoroughbred racehorse by Lyphard. In a racing career which lasted from the autumn of 1985 until October 1986 he ran ten times and won eight races. he was the outstanding European racehorse of 1986 when he won the 2000 Guineas, the Eclipse Stakes, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. His only defeats came in The Derby and the Breeders’ Cup Turf. He was retired to stud where he was a successful sire of winners in Europe before being exported to Japan where he passed away on 2 August 1999.

Dancing Brave (who like Frankel was owned by Khalid Abdullah) was known for his electrifying burst of speed in the finish, which was seen at its best in the Arc.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE REPLAY OF THE 1986 ARC

Turf Talk Newsletter – 29 September 2022