Zeitz is one of two horses who have been supplemented for the Hollywoodbets Durban July. He won Saturday’s traditional July pointer. the Gr 3 Betgames Cup Trial over 1800m, under Serino Moodley (Picture: Race Coast)
The Andre Nel-trained Vercingetorix gelding Zeitz won the Gr 3 Betgames Cup Trial over 1800m on Saturday at Hollywoodbets Greyville under Serino Moodley and the athletic grey has been supplemented for the R10 million Hollywoodbets Durban July.
Everybody loves a grey and an omen that some would view as auspicious for Zeitz’s chances is that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the July win of one of SA’s most beloved greys, the Ralph Rixon-trained Jamaican Music.
Furthermore, Zeitz has the Silvano July stamp, being by his record-breaking stalwart son Vercingetorix, who is miles clear on his way to a second successive national Sires Championship.
Silvano has sired a record-breaking five July winners, Bold Silvano (2010), Heavy Metal (2013), Power King (2015), Marinaresco (2017) and Sparkling Water (2022), while Vercingetorix has already sired one July winner, Oriental Charm (2024). That is not to mention the July hattrick Silvano achieved in 2015 and other finishes in which he had the winner and a placed horse.
Zeitz has duly shortened with the sponsor since entering the Hollywoodbets Durban July betting at 25/1. He is now at 16/1.
The Maine Chance Farms-bred gelding ran off a 107 merit rating on Saturday and carried 56,5kg to a cosy 0,70 length victory over two July entries, I Salute You and JP’s Palace.
Summerveld assistant to the Nel yard, Byron Forster said, “He is a horse you have to give a lot of TLC to, but I am very happy with the way he has pulled up.”
He said about his stamina capacity, considering the July is run over 2200m, “There are some questions marks but he is laid back and he has shown in his work that he settles beautifully. Obviously we will consider taking the blinkers off. In the second dam there is a lot of staying pedigree there and I think he will stay. The furthest he has run over was in last year’s Cape Derby over 2000m and he was well beaten (12.25 lengths behind Equus Horse Of The Year Eight On.Eighteen), but he pulled up sore after that run I believe, so I think a line can be drawn through that run. He is two from three over 1800m. He won last year’s Politician Stakes and he was running on strongly in last year’s Cup Trial, but had a wall of horses in front of him and had nowhere to go. He has now backed up the potential of that run with his win in the Cup Trial on Saturday.”
Byron believes he has the necessary class to be a contender in the July too.
A precedent was set for him by a Nel-trained horse last year, Selukwe, who finished third in the big race.
Selukwe, like Zeitz, had won a traditional July pointer, the Gr 3 WSB 1900, running off a 103 merit rating and carrying 54kg, and had followed up with a strong-finishing 2,65 length third in the July off a 111 merit rating. Under last year’s conditions Selukwe was actually 2kg under sufferance.
The interesting point is Zeitz is better in at the weights than Selukwe was with the new weight structures and yet Byron does not think there is much between them.
He said, “I don’t think there was much between them last season. He just gave us that hint that he could be on a par with a horse like Selukwe and we know what the latter went and did. He has obviously got to prove it at Gr 1 level now, but he has got all the makings to be a nice horse. He has shown it in his form. If you go and look closely at his form he has run with some quality horses and he hasn’t been far off them or has been in front of them.”
The ideal merit rating for a four- year-old July runner to have as things stand is 108, which means coming in with bottom weight of 52kg and not being under sufferance. This is because the new incumbent topweight carrying 62kg, following the scratching of See It Again, is the 128-rated Legal Counsel.
Zeitz is rated 110, so will carry a nice galloping weight of 53kg, meaning Serino Moodley will only have to shed half-a-kilogram from his official riding weight of 53,5kg.
