Turf Talk Newsletter – 29 October, 2025

Picture: Stephen Power with trainer Chris Waller. (@racingblogger)

There is a big buzz around horse racing in Australia – where the sport is already traditionally popular – and, to the delight of administrators and sponsors, a lot of it is from those who generally have very little interest in the sport.

Ben Talintyre, writing on news.com.au, suggests that the recent spectacular crowd at The Everest and several other race meetings, and generally good sentiments on the ground, are largely thanks to social media creators.

He pointed out Englishman Stephen Power as one influencer who has set the Victorian racing scene alight since touching down in Melbourne last week. Does South Africa have a flamboyant blogger for racing?

Power, better known as The Racing Blogger, was flown into Australia to help promote the major Victorian races of the Spring Carnival. He rose from total obscurity to become one of the biggest racing influencers in the world, boasting more than 220,000 followers on X.

Early on, his superconfident, almost cocky style raised some eyebrows, with even his social media accounts suspended at one point in time. But since arriving Down Under on a one-month Aussie horse racing extravaganza, the message from Australian punters has been clear: Power is the best thing to happen to horse racing in Australia.

On his page, Power claims he is “The Best Content In Horse Racing History” and “I Changed The Game”, and Australia seems to agree.

After the first weekend of Power in Australia, the social media reaction has been huge, and the consensus is in. He is great for the sport.

Sky Racing commentator Ron Dufficy wrote: “Ok, I’m convinced Bloggers win over Influencers.”

Punter Herbert Hodgson said: “Racing Twitter is very rarely united, but there’s no doubt @racingblogger has done that. Outstanding content and promotion of the great game, and a good reminder that nothing trumps genuine love of the horse and the punt. Good stuff.”

Australian Bloodstock wrote: “The best-performed import of the Carnival. Outstanding get. Showcasing our big races and participants like never seen before. Hasn’t stopped since landing! Big motor.”

Even legendary horse racing trainer Chris Waller was thrilled to have him in attendance, giving an interview after Via Sistina won the Cox Plate last Saturday.

When the iconic trainer was asked by Power if he could come check out his operation, Waller said: “It would be an absolute honour to have you and your followers, which is a great tribute to you.”

“Thank you for what you do and for your support. I would love to have you one day.”

While Power is one of the biggest names in horse racing media, he is not the only one in the space to have built a mass following in recent years.

Prominent Australian tipster Benny Scarf has emerged from nowhere to become arguably the most influential personality in Australian racing, courtesy of his 220,000-strong Instagram following.

Dubbing himself “God of Punt”, he shot to fame last year by placing ever-larger bets based off his follower count, 5c per follower to be exact.

It is a gimmick popularised by Kiwi blackjack sensation Tim Myers, aka Tim Naki.

Scarf says his type of content is what punters want. “To give people a journey to follow is quite engaging,” Scarf said.

“We have made gambling interesting and an opportunity for people to live through our gambling journeys. It is the theatre of the whole thing — from the hook, visuals and the personality we have also.

“I went to the races when I was 18 and fell in love with the theatre ever since.”

Racing NSW implemented the Everest in 2017, as well as gearing events to the next generation, a move that has seen a surge in racegoers.

Stats from last year showed an average of 74 per cent of general admission attendees for the event in recent years have been under the age of 35.

And the fact is horse racing is thriving, and media personalities in the space are helping attract a younger audience.

According to the 2025 Horse Racing Global Report, the global racing market is set to exceed $647 billion in 2025.

And it is only predicted to get bigger, with projections estimating the industry will grow 9 per cent year-on-year for at least the next four years.

A large part of that comes from gambling, with the sport a punters dream.

With people having easy access to cash, a phone almost always in their hands and short attention spans, horse racing fits the bill perfectly, with some races over in under a minute and races often every couple of minutes each afternoon.

While on track in Australia, tracks have built a sense of community and provide a fun day out.

Punters get dressed up to the nines, can enjoy fashion shows, live music and even find the love of their life.

And with the likes of Power giving everyday Aussies a sneak peek, the sport is likely to only go from strength to strength.

Former South African racing scribe and lifelong enthusiast Dr Jeffrey Zerbst, who immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s, said he was greatly encouraged by reports like these, that promise a great future for racing worldwide.

He told Turf Talk: “The point is to generate excitement, focus on the punt, and promote the sport.  No need to find stories or criticise anyone. Just tap into the enthusiasm that exists, pick up threads of others, and live, eat and breathe the sport.

“To join this world we’d have to up our game to the highest level. The people out there are sharp as tacks. My mate’s son has been landing some terrific all-to-come bets and winning thousands.

“The interesting thing is that the bubble isn’t bursting and there’s probably a 10-year window of bumper racing and predicting ahead.  People need meaning in their lives, and racing gives many people that.”

Picture: Beach Verse and her connections, approaching the winner’s enclosure. (Race Coast). 

Beach Verse (Vercingetorix), the seventh foal of star race mare Beach Beauty, made light work of the opposition in a Handicap over 1400m at Hollywoodbets Durbanville on Wednesday.

She was regarded as a ‘banker’ by trainer Candice Bass, drew the expected market support and won by 2.25-lengths.

Beach Verse is the latest in a very good line of runners that include Narina Trogon, Wild Coast and Beach Bomb, and she could be heading for stakes glory herself, though Candice feels she needs a bit more time and experience.

She said: “Beach Verse is still green, even with the blinkers she had on today, and 1400m is her absolute minimum trip. There is lots of improvement in her. Once she strengthens up, we’ll see the best of her, possibly next year.”

Jockey Richard Fourie agreed, but noted that Beach Verse quickens well. “She gets there very quickly and jockeys who ride her (in future) will have to time her run very well.

Horses with a turn of foot are always a delight to own and Gaynor Rupert, in rare attendance at the country course, said she was excited about Beach Verse.  She also noted that her Drakenstein Stud has some beautiful foals on the ground this foaling season.

Picture: The Ultimate King could bounce back at Turffontein. (JC Photos).

Aspirations of a berth in the R6-million Betway Summer Cup sees a number of horses on the cusp hoping to book their places in the Grade 1 race over 2000m at Turffontein on Saturday 29 November.

A few of them will be in action at Turffontein on Thursday when the eight-race card will be run on the Inside track, writes JACK MILNER.

One of the most interesting contests comes up in Race 4, a MR 95 Handicap over 2000m, where three of those hopefuls – The Ultimate King, Pumpkin Pie and Infinite Wonder – will attempt to get their merit ratings up to an acceptable level and also indicate to the team making the final selection that they are in form and worthy of consideration.

Infinite Wonder is probably the least likely to book a place in the big race as he has been out of form and his merit rating has been moving in the wrong direction.

The other two, however, hold outside chances of claiming a place but even if they did win this race, they will still need to prove themselves in races like the Grade 3 Betway Victory Moon Stakes on 9 November.

The Ultimate King, trained by Tony Peter and to be partnered by Gavin Lerena, is a proven specialist over the distance. The four-year-old son of Vercingetorix has thrived since being gelded, stringing together three consecutive wins – the last of those over this very course and distance – before narrowly failing to extend that streak when conceding 2.5kg to the winner in a similar MR 95 Handicap.

His subsequent fifth over 1800m at the Vaal can be forgiven, given the penalty and change of rider. With Lerena back in the saddle and a return to his preferred 2000m, he looks to be a massive contender.

The stable is in top form as they have indicated with victories by the likes of The Equator, Buffalo Storm Cody and Rachel Wall over the past few days.

Candice Dawson also has her yard in top form and she will send out lightly raced Pumpkin Pie to be ridden by Serino Moodley. The Buffalo Bill Cody gelding has shown enough promise in shorter events to suggest the step up to 2000m could bring about further improvement. He is bred for middle distances and if he sees it out strongly could make a compelling case for inclusion in the Cup line-up.

However, there are others, not entered into the Summer Cup, who need to be taken into consideration for this event, headed up by Hawkbill. This Lucky Houdalakis-trained Elusive Fort gelding finished 1.40 lengths ahead of The Ultimate King last time and they meet at the same weights.

That run puts him right into the fray, but he does have to jump from No 11 draw. Craig Zackey takes the ride.

The other contender looks to be Kudzu, a reliable handicapper, worth including in Exacta and Trifecta combinations for those chasing bigger dividends.

Earlier on the card, the James Crawford – Callan Murray combination looks poised for a flying start. Real Stunner caught the eye on his Highveld debut when a fast-finishing fifth over 1200m, and the step up to 1600m in Race 1 should see the Oratorio gelding go very close.

Stablemate Duchess Of Paloma, a Royal Mo filly who has shown steady improvement since relocating from Cape Town, appears ready to strike in Race 2 over the same trip. – 4Racing.

Picture: Yippee Kiyay (green and blue silks), beats The Last Duke. (JC Photos)

Bill Mott, trainer of Sovereignty. (Youtube).

THE Breeders’ Cup has been dealt a huge blow after massive Classic favourite Sovereignty was ruled out of the £5million race.

A general 7-4 favourite, the Godolphin three-year-old colt was a doubt after recording a temperature on Tuesday.

And on Wednesday, trainer Bill Mott confirmed: “We’re going to scratch.”

Kentucky Derby-winning Sovereignty was as short as 13-8 to claim America’s second-biggest race under jockey Junior Alvarado.

But with him out, billionaire owner Mike Repole’s Fierceness is the new 5-2 market leader with most bookies.

While the Coolmore-owned defending champion Sierra Leone is around 3-1 to go back to back.

Speaking on Tuesday when news of Sovereignty’s condition first became known, Mott said: “He had a slightly elevated temperature yesterday [Monday] and that remained through the night. T

“This morning [Tuesday], when we got here around 5.30am, he still had a fever.

“He had no medication at all so we took blood samples. Part of the blood samples have come back and part of them are pending.

“Since 6am we gave him some medication to help alleviate the fever, so his temperature is down to normal right now.

“He’s eating everything and he looks fine. He’s eating all his grain.

“He’s not missed a note. He’s not missed any feed all year long.

“Last night and this morning was no exception.”

But they say it’s the hope that kills you and that turned out to be true, with Mott putting the horse’s welfare first and pulling him from the race.

Victory in the Classic – which will be shown live on ITV4 at 10.25pm on Saturday night – would have taken Sovereignty’s career earnings to more than £7.5m.

The Into Mischief colt has won six of his nine career races and arrived on the back of winning his past four contests, including the Belmont and Travers Stakes.

There is a R1-million Pick 6 carryover to Saturday’s Charity Mile meeting at Turffontein, and a pool of R5-million is expected.

The Computaform for this meeting has been published and is available here, so you can start making form notes to catch the big fish this weekend.

It’s a quality card which, aside from the Allied Steelrode Onamission Charity Mile includes five other features and some big names, including Tin Pan Alley, Elegantrix, World Of Alice and Perfect Miracle, potentially the new sprinting sensation on the block.

The meeting sees the return of Champion Jockey Gavin Lerena, joined by the formidable Richard Fourie and other title-chasers Craig Zackey, Muzi Yeni, Sean Veale and Serino Moodley.

Picture: We continue with our present Charity Mile theme, in which imported runners have a good record. The stallion in the photo is Giant’s Causeway, whose son Our Giant (Charles Laird-Anton Marcus), won the race in 2007. The sire followed up a full eight years later with a five-year-old winner owned by Mary Slack. Can you name him without using Google?