Picture : Future Variety, a promising son of Var, races for the Bass Racing (Pty) Ltd T/A Centenary Syndicate
Syndication has the potential to take off in South Africa and this was evidenced when Greg Ennion Announced at Tuesday’s Hollywoodbets Durbanville meeting (which was abandoned after three races) that he had managed to syndicate a horse off in just two days.
Cape Racing’s support of syndicates will be threefold:
- Cape Racing will assist in the marketing and promotion of each licensed syndicator. If the syndicate is a start-up, Cape Racing will assist in its initial setup. This will include logo design, website, and social media page building. Cape Racing will also provide dedicated content assistants to each syndicate. The syndicator will receive high-quality content, from track work to race footage, that he or she can offer and send to his or her owners through the content assistant. Cape Racing will also promote each licensed syndicator through all our web and social media channels.
- Cape Racing will be offering financial assistance to syndicators. Each licensed syndicator will receive six months’ interest-free payment terms at a Cape Racing sale. This helps the syndicators extend slightly so there is always stock on the shelf for new owners. Cape Racing will also pay the syndicator a 2% commission on horses purchased for their syndicate from a Cape Racing sale.
- Incentives will be paid out to both the ownership of the horse and the syndicate manager based on the success of the syndicate horse. The size of the incentives paid out will depend on the category of trainer of each horse. The incentive payouts will be as below:
CATEGORY A TRAINER (a top 3 position on the Cape trainers log the previous season):
- R20 000 win bonus to the ownership (One win bonus per horse a season)
- R5 000 win bonus to the syndicate manager (One win bonus per horse a season)
- R250 RaceCape fee to the syndicate manager per runner
CATEGORY B TRAINER (log position between 4th and 6th on the Cape trainers log the previous season):
- R20 000 win bonus to the ownership (Two win bonuses per horse a season)
- R5 000 win bonus to the syndicate manager (Two win bonuses per horse a season)
- R500 RaceCape fee to the syndicate manager per runner
CATEGORY C TRAINER (log position of 7th and below on the Cape trainers log the previous season)
- R20 000 win bonus to the ownership (Three win bonuses per horse a season)
- R5 000 win bonus to the syndicate manager (Three win bonuses per horse a season)
- R750 RaceCape fee to the syndicate manager per runner
Explained Justin Vermaak: “We have an imbalance amongst the trainer ranks in the Western Cape. We need to try to boost our smaller yards as much as possible. This creates a healthier horse population and provides further opportunities for horses to run. We also appreciate that syndicating horses with the so-called “smaller” stables is more challenging than selling horses to be trained by the big names. Thus we will base our incentives according to the category of trainer. The trainers’ championship standings determine the category at the end of each season. This removes any opinion or judgment in placing trainers into categories. Prior season log position is the sole determining factor.”
ON TOP OF THESE INCENTIVES, CAPE RACING WILL HOST A “SYNDICATORS CHAMPIONSHIP.”
All qualifying runners will earn points for their respective syndicators.
At the end of the season, the champion syndicator will win R100 000 and be awarded the leading syndicator award at the Cape Racing Awards. There will also be bonuses for the syndicators filling the top five places on the championship log.
Added Vermaak: “The process to get signed up as a licensed syndicator is simple. Contact our team, and we will send the necessary registration paperwork. We will require documentation and conduct our vetting process to ensure the applicant’s good standing. Once approved, the syndicator will receive an official verification badge from the Cape Turf Club. This serves as proof that the syndicator has been officially licensed by us and passed our vetting control, which gives prospective owners and shareholders a show of confidence in the authenticity of the syndicator. Once onboard as a licensed syndicator, we will work hand in hand to ensure the growth and stimulation of your syndicate.”
Once onboard as an official syndicate, the syndicator must apply for each horse to qualify for the incentives.
During this process, Cape Racing will ensure that each horse has been syndicated in the program’s spirit. Cape Racing has set certain qualifying criteria.
For example, each horse must be at least 50% owned by the syndicate. Also, a minimum of six owners are needed for the ownership group to be designated as a syndicate.
The program intends to grow the ownership base with new owners and transform the ownership base in the Cape.
For further information, please contact Justin Vermaak at email: justin@caperacing.co.za.
Individual owners are also incentivised.
The trainer categories to apply this season are the same as those published above for the syndicate scheme and are listed below:
- Category A – Snaith/Bass/Crawford
- Category B – Marshall/Kotzen/Kannemeyer
- Category C – The rest + ALL raiders
These categories will be remunerated as follows (appearance fees):
Category Owner Trainer
- A R2 000 R400
- B R2 500 R500
- C R3 000 R750
Jockeys will receive an additional R100 a ride, with a 50% reduction if not meeting the local work riding criteria.
The visitor bonuses will remain – i.e. R10 000 to the owner and R10 000 to the trainer for non-festival meetings.
This increases to R50 000 to the owner and R50 000 to the trainer at a Festival meeting, but does not apply to races with stakes in excess of R500 000.
Subsidies for transport and free stable rental are also offered to out-of-province runners.
