With the light fading fast at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on Sunday, Candiese Lenferna captured subsequent winner Teriyaki with Mathew Thackeray aboard, cantering to the start. A son of Willow Magic, Teriyaki shed his maiden in the MR 76 Handicap for trainer Tony Rivalland and owner Mary Liley.
After months of inclement weather, things have turned for the better in the Cape! Chase Liebenberg captured this image of a fan at a sun-drenched Hollywoodbets Durbanville on Saturday. There is no question which team he supports, and just hours later the Springboks beat the All Blacks at the DHL Stadium to lift the Freedom Cup. The Country Course hosts racing for the next seven weeks, after which the track action returns to Hollywoodbets Kenilworth in early November.
Healthy field sizes means healthy racing. Chasing racemeeting numbers while not taking cognisance of the horse population is a recipe for disaster. This is clearly evident in some racing regions in South Africa, where being bigger somehow seems more important than being the best.
Greg Bortz and his Cape Racing delegation have been back in the fairest Cape a week since leaving the 40th Asian Racing Conference in Saporo, Japan, feeling excited and geared to take the local region to the next level.
The Sporting Post caught up with the Cape Racing Chairman for a cup of coffee and a chat on Monday.
SP: You had your time to talk at ARC – what did you tell them in a nutshell about the challenges facing SA and Cape Racing?
GB: The single biggest challenge here in SA is that we enjoy no government financial support. All financing comes from the operators – and the racing operators even fund their own regulator. And the share of punters winning tax is derived from the punters. There is thus no tax support as such, from the government.
Looking at challenges universally, racing has to compete for the customer’s spend and mindshare with a proliferation of other forms of entertainment and gambling. And for racing, we are an expensive show to put on – so we are at a disadvantage there too.
SP: Are SA racing’s collective challenges very different to what other jurisdictions are facing?
GB: We all broadly face the same challenges of competing for mindshare. And we have the beautiful thoroughbred in the midst of our sport. With social media and awareness at the levels they are today, we have to counter the anti— cruelty lobby too. Some things like online slots, for example, don’t have to worry about that aspect. And, I will say it again, our challenges are exacerbated by the absence of government financial support.
SP: “Not only was the company broke, but
the culture was completely broken,” is an ARC quote attributed to you. Was that not a slap in the face for those that ran local racing before you?
GB: It was broken! Do you blame those that ran the industry or the company? It was run in essence by Phumelela. Fact is, whoever ran it completely screwed it. Leadership means running the entity well and creating a great culture. Neither happened.
SP: What would you say is your single major reality eye-opener takeout from the conference?
GB: The haves vs have-nots amongst the different jurisdictions. The haves all have deep government funding enabling them to put on a great product. The have-nots have to be creative.
SP: The life of the thoroughbred after racing is a major perception challenge for the sport. What are Cape Racing doing locally?
GB: There is the perception and then there is also the reality. We take this aspect very seriously and have to keep stepping up. We are doing so via a number of charities that we support by giving them racedays, as an example, to raise funds and create awareness.
We are also part of the Hollywood family and they have the Life After Racing initiative which is a tangible and excellent way of showing genuine love and care. Our operations team are also looking at expanding what we do. It’s a work-in-progress and a high priority for us and the sport at large.
SP: Getting the younger generation to enjoy racing is clearly a challenge – did you learn anything from ARC?
GB: My daughter Alexa has great insight into this aspect and she has come back with ideas and inspiration. It’s a fact that racing has an aging customer base. Those aged 55 or above represent 43% of total racing customers and account for 52% of total racing betting turnover.
To appeal to a younger audience, we need to change the perception of horseracing, positioning it as a sport with a love for horses. Additionally, horseracing should be promoted with live events and entertainment to attract younger audiences. Gen Z’s are about half as likely as Millennials to watch sports often, and twice as likely never to watch.
We must also become data-centric to become customer-centric. Using the NBA as an example, they have released the first-of-its-kind, data-driven, experiential app specifically for its fanbase.
Peter V’landys, CEO of Racing New South Wales and Chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission, expressed his hope to enhance parimutuel wagering’s presence with a single-tote operation in Australia. He also echoed Winfried Engelbrecht Bresges view that collaboration can see the industry thrive.
Alexia found his strategy for appealing to a younger demographic incredibly interesting. He discussed the success of The Everest Cup in Sydney, Australia, sharing that almost 90% of the attendees were aged between 18 and 35 years old.
Marketing for The Everest Cup was done exclusively through TikTok and Instagram, and they only hired people aged 25 and below to do the marketing for that event.
Peter also explained that marketing to 18 to 25-year-olds completely differs from marketing to 25 to 35-year-olds. As he indicated,
Millennials crave unique experiences and ‘wow moments’ that they can share on their social media, whereas Gen Z craves community, authenticity, and long-term connection with brands. The younger generations want to bet as a group, not as individuals.
SP: Cape Racing’s successes are clear to see – you have close on doubled the horse population, the field sizes are improved, stakes and incentives are popular, the facilities are world-class. Is there one aspect you feel needs attention as it has not met your expectations and plans?
GB: We are focussed on getting a younger audience in and we have made great strides with our syndication. Ultimately our success hinges on attracting a younger audience we are nowhere close given our aging demographic.
We want to build our feature events to make them attractive and get the younger generation – like in the days of 30 000 people attending the Met. This is unquestionably an area where we have the most work ahead of us.
SP: You have been in the Cape racing hotseat for one could say two years now. Is there any single thing you would have done differently if you could turn back time?
GB: I never look back I only look forward – I know it sounds cliched, but it’s true! As I just said, the youth and syndication is fundamental.
To answer your question, we needed to do what we needed to do. We came in like a house on fire and made changes quickly to save the company and change the culture.
Looking back today, I wouldn’t change a thing in that regard. And I am not giving us an A+ grade because everything single thing we have done, we could have done better.
We subscribed to the Hollywood philosophy and culture of always improving – there are no 10 out 10’s! Our strategy of being owner-centric to boost horse population has worked well. The field sizes show it.
While our execution could always be better in all the big moments, looking back it has been the correct strategy.
SP: The Cape horse population has doubled since you took over. Does size matter to you?
GB: Simply – would you rather be the biggest or the best? No question, it’s the best.
We want to deliver the best quality racing on a consistent basis. That’s what we are striving for. We do not want to host the most racemeetings just for the sake of it.
And we note with angst and bemusement the failure of others to recognise that there needs to be a link between horse population and field sizes, as well as number of racemeeting and races.
Overracing relative to the region’s population means that one is creating an environment of
weaker racing, smaller fields, and ultimately a less interesting product. Doing this is a oneway-ticket to a downward spiral.
So, we in the Cape would rather race less, but race better. Our maxim is quality over quantity. We want stickability – customers and people that become passionate about our racing.
Historically in South Africa, we raced every day except Christmas. But until our horse population returns to those lofty levels of yesterday, we must stop trying to fill slots for the sake of it.
In the Cape, we are capping our meetings to 75 per year. Interestingly, our population is in line with the other major centres, yet we are racing 75 times, while Gauteng are on 122 meetings – with similar horses at their disposal. It makes no sense.
In KZN, they have a similar population but race approximately 30% more times than us.
We believe our mix in the Cape is right as it allows us to stage good competitive racing, with field sizes averaging in double digits which makes it visually pleasing – and, as the ARC was in agreement with, healthy field sizes absolutely creates happier healthy racing.
Isivunguvungu was born at Narrow Creek in Wolseley | Credit: Supplied
Just hours after the Springboks beat the All Blacks in Cape Town to lift the 2024 Freedom Cup, an equine speed merchant that first saw the light of day just 130km away from the DHL Stadium at Narrow Creek Stud, nestled between the orchards and vineyards of the Wolseley Valley, was announcing his arrival on the US racing scene to cap a memorable day for South African sport.
The champagne corks were popping in many homes across South Africa on Saturday evening as the Hollywood Syndicate celebrated a dream come true after their speed champion Isivunguvungu planted the Bok flag, overcoming an arduous 14000km journey across the world and two months of counting the long days in quarantine, to win the 17th renewal of the $150 000 Da Hoss Stakes at Colonial Downs in Virginia.
Given our rollercoaster history of export protocols and the ups and downs that have gone with it, the achievement of Saturday’s victory was made more sweet by the bold move and passionate belief that rode on the back of
the quantum fiscal and emotional leap of taking on the world.
It’s a fact that Isivunguvungu was the only gelding on that valuable cargo of eleven equine athletes that touched down on Thursday 7 March 2024 at JFK Airport in New York following the long flight from Johannesburg.
With well-performed fillies and mares, there is always the insurance of a second chance in the breeding paddocks. Sending geldings is a whole different risk game.
For the champion’s breeders John and Renee Everett, the Colonial Downs victory is a dream come true as Isivunguvungu became Narrow Creek Stud’s first international winner since they opened their beautiful farm for business in May 2013.
“What a race. What a racehorse!
Congratulations to the Hollywood Syndicate. This is a great advert for our racing and breeding and we are very chuffed and so proud,” said John Everett as he told the
Sporting Post on Sunday that he’d be exaggerating if he suggested that he knew the moment Isivunguvungu was born that he was destined to be a champion.
“We love all of our horses and we see them all as champions. But I recall that he, along with Big Eyed Girl and Moonshiningthrough, was purchased off the farm during the time of covid. And what Isivunguvungu did have – and it’s a good sign with the What A Winter progeny – is that ‘spare’ rib. An extra rib. His Dad was a dual Equus Champion Sprinter and he is the third foal of a mare that hasn’t produced for four seasons after reabsorbing – possibly as a result of a bout of biliary earlier on.”
A Narrow Creek homebred, Isivunguvungu’s
Mom Miss Tweedy is a daughter of Tiger Ridge
out of Danehill’s Australian-bred granddaughter Dancing Penny.
“Vet Dr Ian Heyns and I bought Dancing Penny off one of the Equimark Sales,” John recalled previously.
“We bred Miss Tweedy in partnership but when we couldn’t get a bid for her at the KZN yearling sale, I bought out Ian’s half-share and kept her for myself. I raced her with Dorrie Sham and she won us four races.”
John added that Miss Tweedy is currently in foal to Malmoos.
And the good news is that the immediately family is securely represented at Narrow Creek by three young mares, in the shape of Miss
Tweedy’s Rafeef half-sister, Chicks For Free, as well as two half-sisters to Isivunguvungu, the winner Bat Out Of Hell (Querari), and placed Damned If I Do (Rafeef).
“Bat Out Of Hell is in foal to What A Winter – that’s really exciting with Isivunguvungu doing so very well! She’s due towards the end of September!” he smiles broadly.
Although he was bumped at the start, Isivunguvungu always appeared full of running on Saturday, racing tactically in third place along the rail while under restraint from Franco.
“He spent two months in quarantine at the beginning of the year. He is a very special horse. He has a big following in South Africa, and I am so happy for those guys, super happy for the Hollywood Syndicate. Manny Franco gave him a great ride.”
Isivunguvungu is being aimed at the Gr1 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint on the turf at Del Mar.
“November is not that far off, and he ran a big race today,” Motion said.
“We have to decide if we are going to run him again; we have to decide if he is going to be able to get in the Breeders’ Cup, which is what we’d really like to do. There’s a fine line now with this guy. I think he’s done enough fitnesswise to get there without another race, so we’ll just decide.”
The www.bloodhorse.com website reports that tracking fractions of :21.91 and :44.27, Isivunguvungu sat about two lengths back until a large opening appeared turning for home.
Surging through on the inside, he opened a two-length stretch lead then had to hang on late to win by a neck over a rallying Nothing Better . Final time for 5 1/2 furlongs on firm turf was 1:02.58.
“I can’t say enough about what a good effort this was today,” trainer Graham Motion said.
Top sprinter Isivunguvungu (What A Winter) did South Africa proud when he won the Da Hoss Stakes at Colonial Downs on Saturday. Isivunguvungu was having his first start in North America and his first outing since January.
What A Winter (Western Winter ex Waseela) – the sire of Saturday’s SA-bred USA winner, Isivunguvungu | Credit: Drakenstein Stud
Equus Champion Sprinter of 2022-2023, Isivunguvungu is one of 26 stakes winners for his sire What A Winter, Champion Sprinter in South Africa in both 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. Like Isivunguvungu, What A Winter won both the Gr1 Computaform Sprint and Gr1 Mercury Sprint, and was also victorious in two runnings of the Gr1 Cape Flying Championship.
Isivunguvungu is one of five Grade One winners for his sire thus far, with this tally including another champion sprinter in the form of Russet Air, as well as last season’s Ridgemont Garden Province Stakes winner Humdinger.
What A Winter had success on two continents on Saturday, with his four-year-old daughter Jet To The Sun winning the fifth race at Hollywoodbets Durbanville.
The Drakenstein Stud sire is a grandson of Gone West, whose influence continues to be felt around the globe. Gone West’s grandson Munnings is the sire of Saturday’s Gr1 Aristocrat Franklin-Simpson Stakes winner Howard Wolowitz, while another grandson, Iffraaj, sired Saturday’s Gr1 Tarzino Trophy winner Grail Seeker.
Iffraaj is also responsible for outstanding stallion Wootton Bassett, whose son Royal Patronage won Saturday’s Gr2 Ikon Tramway Stakes at Randwick.
Isivunguvungu is out of the four-time winning Tiger Ridge mare Miss Tweedy, a daughter of the Danske sired Listed Breeders Guineas winner Dancing Penny. Miss Tweedy is closely
inbred to Storm Bird, through the latter’s grandson Tiger Ridge with Miss Tweedy’s third dam, Song Of Freedom, a daughter of the Storm Bird horse Bluebird.
Inbreeding to Storm Bird has produced a plethora of top-class horses including Bricks And Mortar (Giant’s Causeway), Horse Of The Year in the USA in 2019. Egyptian Queen, dam of Global View, sire of reigning South African Horse Of The Year Dave The King, is inbred to Storm Bird’s dam South Ocean.
Miss Tweedy’s fifth dam, Gr1 Rosehill Guineas winner Deck The Halls (Father Christmas), also ranks as the third dam of 2014 Gr1 Rising Sun Gold Challenge winner King Of Pain (Greys Inn).
The champion also hails from a very influential female line, with Isivunguvungu tracing back directly to the tap root mare Wild Arum. The latter’s daughter Malva produced Epsom Derby winner and champion sire Blenheim II (Blandford) and Malva also ranks as the fourth dam of High Veldt (Hyperion), Champion Sire in South Africa in 1971-1972.
Wild Arum’s great granddaughter Gold Lily (Gold Bridge) also made a considerable impact on the stud book. Ancestress of Isivunguvungu, Gold Lily also appears prominently in the pedigrees of US champion Waya, Gr1 Prix Vermeille winner Walensee (Troy), and the latter’s star son Westerner (Danehill). The latter was Cartier Champion Stayer of 2004 and 2005 and twice won the Gr1 Prix Du Cadran over 4000 metres.
Gold Lily also rates as ancestress of South African champions Dancer’s Daughter (Act One) and Rain In Holland (Duke Of Marmalade), as well as 1991 Gr1 Gold Cup winner Icona (Green Dancer).
After Isivunguvungu’s big win at Colonial Downs on Saturday, the attention of many South African racing fans are now on the speed big guns he is likely to face in the BC Turf Sprint.
After Isivunguvungu’s big win at Colonial Downs on Saturday, the attention of many South African racing fans are now on the speed big guns he is likely to face in the BC Turf Sprint.
One of those is North America’s top grass sprinter Cogburn who avenged a 2023 defeat over the undulating, European-style Kentucky Downs course—his only loss on grass—by dominating the $1 797 200 Gr2 Ainsworth Turf Sprint Stakes on Saturday.
Unlike at Kentucky Downs in this same race last
year, when he was just off the early pace and checked in a close fifth, Cogburn took charge immediately in the six-furlong contest and was always in control under Irad Ortiz Jr.
Throwing down splits of :
• 21.82
• 44.14, and
• 55.48 - he pulled away to score by 3 1/4 lengths under only mild pressure from Ortiz.
The Steve Asmussen trainee, owned by Clark Brewster and Bill and Corinne Heiligbrodt, hit the wire with a final time of 1:07.68.
“I didn’t do much, to be honest, just hold it together and he took me all the way,” Ortiz said.
The British-trained Khaadem, winner of Royal Ascot’s Gr1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes in 2023-24, rallied to grab second.
A length farther behind, Axthelm nipped 2023 Gr1 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint winner Nobals by a nose for the show.
Saturday’s race was part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series: Win and You’re In, offering its winner a free, automatic paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar on 2 November.
However, Cogburn already punched his ticket for the race by winning another Breeders’ Cup Challenge race, the 8 June Gr1 Jaipur Stakes at Saratoga. That day he blitzed the 1100m in a North American record :59.80. He had been scheduled to race there again over the summer but was scratched from the Gr3 Troy Stakes when rain forced it to the main track.
A month after the Jaipur, WinStar Farm announced it had partnered with his racing owners in acquiring the breeding rights to the 5-year-old son of Not This Time. Cogburn will stand at WinStar Farm upon his retirement from racing.
“What an amazing horse Cogburn is. What a wonderful ownership group,” Asmussen said. “I’m so proud that it’s the first time that he ran since WinStar bought into him, bought his breeding rights. For him to validate the form that he has shown all year long in his turf sprints is very special.”
Cogburn missed a chance to pursue the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint last year when he was sidelined after his race at Kentucky Downs. He returned to action this May.
Before his success on turf, Cogburn was a three-time winner in eight dirt starts.
As a juvenile, he broke his maiden at Churchill Downs on dirt in his second start, winning by 4 1/4 lengths in 1:09.79 for six furlongs. He has won nine of 15 starts overall.
Bellary Bloodstock bred Cogburn in Kentucky out of the Saintly Look stakes winner In a Jif, the dam of three winners from as many starters.
Brewster bought the winner for $150 000 from the Pick View consignment at the 2021 Ocala Breeders’ Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training.
“Just a great horse, and even better partners. Just happy to be here,” Brewster said after the race.
“It was amazing.”
He is among a group of elite runners sired by Not This Time, along with such notable runners as champions Epicenter and Up to the Mark.
One of the top young stallions in North America, Not This Time stood the 2024 breeding season for $150 000 at Taylor Made Stallions in Kentucky.
‘Hopefully Isivunguvungu is the first of many’ – Mike de Kock
Caesour’s champion daughter Irridescence | Credit: Supplied
The ink had barely dried on Beach Bomb’s debut second in the recent Gr3 Violet Stakes when stable companion and fellow South African-bred Isivunguvungu went one better. South Africa’s Champion Sprinter of 2022-23, the dual Gr1 winner made the fourhour trip from Graham Motion’s stables to Colonial Downs for his American debut and duly showed he is on target for a tilt at the Breeders’ Cup Sprint with a game victory in the Da Hoss Stakes over 1100m.
To the writer’s knowledge, the son of What A Winter is the first South African-bred stakes winner on American soil since August 2013, when The Apache crossed the line first in the fabled Gr1 Arlington Million, only to lose the race in the boardroom.
On a day filled with disappointment and high drama, Mike de Kock’s charge was demoted
to second after he had shifted out and bumped runner-up Real Solution.
Jockey Christophe Soumillon remarked afterwards: “We were the better horse, but he got scared by the video screen close to the finish and shifted out.”
Sadly, The Apache ended a notable window in time during which a number of South African-breds showed their mettle on American racetracks.
Many will think that it started with De Kock’s grand champion Horse Chestnut. Horse of the Year and the country’s first Triple Crown winner, the Oppenheimer-bred and raced colt made a dream American debut when he powered to a five-length victory in the Gr3 Broward Stakes at Gulfstream Park.
However, it was his year-younger compatriot, the filly Spook Express, who started the ball rolling. She too, had raced from the De Kock stable in South Africa, where Gr1 victories in the Sharp Electronics Cup, Garden Province and SA Fillies Guineas earned her championship honours.
Crowned the country’s top 3YO filly, the daughter of the Blushing Groom horse Comic Blush was sold to America, where she went on to perform with marked success. She added another four Graded stakes successes to her resume, including the Gr2 Galaxy Stakes, whilst chasing home champion Banks Hill (who became the dam of Mauritzfontein stallion Ideal World) in the 2001 Gr1 Breeders Cup Filly and Mare Turf.
Sadly, this hard-knocking mare suffered a fatal injury in the Gr1 Matriarch Stakes at Hollywood Park, a race subsequently won by compatriot Gypsy’s Warning.
Like The Apache, Gypsy’s Warning was sired by Mogok and was one of a plethora of stakesperformed South African-bred fillies purchased to race in the States by Team Valor’s Barry Irwin, who saw the economic gap: buy South
African value in Rands and aim for Dollar success.
Campaigned in South Africa at two and three, Gypsy’s Warning captured the Gr1 Thekwini Fillies Stakes and Gr1 SA Fillies’ Classic. Stateside she landed Monmouth Park’s Gr3 Eatontown Handicap on debut and like Isivunguvungu and Beach Bomb, was trained by Graham Motion, who went on to do a super job with the quirky filly, given that she was not an easy character and had a mind of her own. Her signature victory in the 2010 Matriarch Stakes came on the back of third-place efforts in the Gr1 Beverly D and Gr1 Yellow Ribbon Stakes.
By the way, South African distaffers have built an excellent record in Arlington’s Beverly D Stakes.
While Spook Express finished third in 2001, the Gr1 Paddock Stakes victress Crimson Palace won it three years later in the blue silks of Godolphin, who had acquired the daughter of Elliodor from Team Valor after her first start in Dubai.
Caesour’s champion daughter Irridescence, who, like Gypsy’s Warning, raced in the States for Team Valor and Green Lantern Stables, closed out her stellar career in the 2007 renewal, where she went down by the narrowest of margins.
As a sophomore, she had won the Gr1 South African Classic and Gr1 Woolavington Stakes, achievements which earned her the title of Champion classic female of 2004/05.
Sold to Team Valor and trained by Mike de Kock, she enjoyed her finest moment when defeating a high-class field in the 2006 Gr1 Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup in Hong Kong, a race previously won by pioneer London News in course record time!
Another globetrotter, Pocket Power’s Gr1 winning own sister River Jetez, finished third
The great Hawaii – a forerunner| Credit: Supplied
in the 2011 Beverly D, an admirable effort considering she was already eight years old. Warning Zone, the Champion Juvenile Filly of 2002, was another ex De Kock-trainee to earn American black type in the Team Valor silks when successful in a Listed race on debut.
Yet another American stakes winner for Team Valor was Alexandra Rose. A Gr2 winning juvenile in South Africa for Glen Kotzen, this daughter of Caesour crowned her American campaign with victory in the Gr3 Monrovia Handicap at Santa Anita.
She also has the honour of being the dam of an American Gr1 winner, her Australian-bred daughter Oleksandra defeating male rivals in the Gr1 Jaipur Stakes at Belmont Park.
Cape Fillies Guineas victress Captain’s Lover also raced with distinction for Team Valor.
A Gr3 winner of the Prix du Pin in France, she too, crossed the Atlantic where she proceeded to romp to a seven-length victory in Monmouth Park’s Matchmaker Stakes.
While Horse Chestnut and The Apache are probably the most prominent male runners of this particular era, it would be remiss not to make mention of Trademark.
South Africa’s Champion Older Middle Distance Horse of 2000 and a winner of the Gr1 Durban July and Gr1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate for Mike Bass, he became a dual Gr2 American Stakes winner at the ripe old age of seven when he claimed both the Bernard Baruch and Fourstardave Handicap.
Incidentally, his Elliodor half-sister Super Brand also ended up joining the Team Valor outfit after winning the Gr3 Final Fling Stakes. She too, won in her adopted country, whilst earning American black type when runner-up in the Gr2 Winstar Galaxy Stakes.
A colt who flew under the radar was Mahubo, a National Emblem half-brother to the fine globetrotter Imbongi.
Trained by Herman Brown Jnr, Mahubo had earned his first black type as a maiden when he finished third in the Gr3 Godolphin Barb Stakes as a juvenile. Twice a winner at three for trainer Herman Brown Jnr, the colt was then sent to Dubai, where he scored once before his transferral to the States and the stable of Kiaran McLaughlin. He opened his stakes account by landing Aqueduct’s Listed Three Coins Up Stakes, one of three victories stateside.
Champion sprinter Tara’s Touch turned out to be yet another shrewd Team Valor purchase. Effective up to a mile and trained by Joey Ramsden for owner/breeder Rob Knuppe, she capped her South African racing career with a two-length success in the Gr1 Garden Province at four.
Transferred stateside, this daughter of Tara’s Halls blossomed at age six as a sprinter of note, winning Keeneland’s Stravinsky Stakes, in addition to which she crossed the Canadian border to claim the Gr3 Royal North Handicap at Woodbine.
This nostalgia trip goes to show that South African-breds can more than hold their own in the ultra-tough arena of American racing, reiterated by the recent bold showings of Isivunguvungu and Beach Bomb.
Needless to say, trainer Mike de Kock, the man who initially put the wraps on so many horses mentioned above, was delighted with Isivunguvungu’s win.
“Hopefully this will be the first of many,” he remarked. Amen to that.
The 2023/24 season just past saw Ridgemont achieve their best new generation results to date and a national top five finish on the SA Champion Breeder log, with near R16 million in stakes earned. The Robertson team also achieved the leading national win percentage strike rate of the top echelon of breeders.
Robertson-based breeding operation
Ridgemont head into the breeding season with the ‘magnificent seven’, their most diverse and exciting stallion attack in the seven winters since the Kieswetter family acquired the historic champion nursery.
“We are delighted with the line up of stallions we have assembled for the upcoming breeding season and are excited to be able to offer exciting options for mare owners,” Craig Carey told the Sporting Post.
The 2023/24 season just past saw Ridgemont achieve their best new generation results to date and a national top five finish on the SA Champion Breeder log, with near R16 million in stakes earned. The Robertson team also achieved the leading national win percentage strike rate of the top echelon of breeders.
The 2023/24 SA racing season reached a sensational high for Ridgemont when they celebrated breeding the first two home in the prestigious Ridgemont Gr1 Garden Province Stakes on Hollywoodbets Durban July Day.
Sponsored for the third consecutive year by Ridgemont, the Gr1 Garden Province Stakes ranks amongst the most important weight-forage races for fillies and mares in South Africa, and produced a career peak success for the Mike de Kock-trained Humdinger who is out of the Fort Wood mare Himalayan Hill, while the year younger multiple Gr1 placed Happy Chance, a soldier in the Brett Crawford yard, is out of Captain Al’s daughter Three Blue Cranes.
On the Highveld, The Championships Finale at Turffontein on Saturday 27 April proved a redletter day for the Ridgemont team, with three home-bred feature winners, and their sires past and present, accounting for four features on the bumper card.
The grand day saw Ridgemont bred Canford Cliffs’ daughter Simply Majestic win the TAB Gr3 Pretty Polly Stakes, followed by Ridgemont’s red-hot sire Rafeef celebrating a dazzling double with his daughters Mrs Browning and Beating Wings winning the TAB Gr2 Camellia Stakes and TAB Gr2 Igugu Stakes, respectively.
The feature double highlighted Rafeef’s extraordinary versatility as a sire, with Mrs Browning scoring over 1160m, and her paternal half-sister victorious over 2000m.
The fourth champagne moment on the premier day came in the marathon TAB Listed Gold Bowl, when the evergreen Crimson King, a son of Ridgemont’s iconic late champion stallion Dynasty (Fort Wood), powered home to register his fifth win. Bred by Ridgemont, the gallant winner is out of the three-time winning Mogok mare, Cup Of Rubies, a half-sister to 2007 Durban July winner Hunting Tower.
Just three weeks earlier at Turffontein, Champions Day 3 of The Championships heralded a remarkable top level versatility
injected feature double for Rafeef, when his son Thunderstruck, like his Dad six years earlier, won the Jonsson Workwear Gr1 Computaform Sprint, while daughter Frances Ethel stormed home to win the Wilgerbosdrift Bridget Oppenheimer Gr2 SA Oaks.
On the same afternoon another Gr1-winning son of Rafeef, Aragosta, finished third in the World Pool Gr1 Premier’s Champions Challenge, while another of the champion’s progressive sons Positive Attitude ran second in the 4Racing Listed Caradoc Gold Cup.
That’s hard hitters from 1000m to 2850m!
In the beautiful valley where top stallions of the ilk of Dynasty, Elevation, Jallad, Jet Master, National Assembly and the legendary Persian Wonder changed the breeding landscape over the decades, the new generation Ridgemont boasts a stallion barn second to none. The powerhouse includes former SA Champion Freshman sire Rafeef, five-time Grade 1 winner Canford Cliffs and Singspiel’s Grade 1 winner Potala Palace, who have all performed admirably in the past season, with exciting times ahead as SA Triple Crown winner Malmoos and blue-blooded speed demon Real Gone Kid have yearlings on the ground. Multiple Grade 1 winner and newly
crowned Equus SA Champion sprinter Thunderstruck, a son of Rafeef, and the exciting recently imported US Grade 1 winner Hit The Road – like multiple champion sire Gimmethegreenlight, a son of sire of sires More Than Ready - are the new arrivals in the illustrious Ridgemont stallion class of ’24.
Interestingly, Thunderstruck will be the third member of the Redoute’s Choice clan to stand at the historical Robertson nursery, as Rafeef is by the revered former Arrowfield champion, whilst speedball barnmate Real Gone Kid is by his champion son Snitzel. Besides his proven racing ability, Thunderstruck’s wide spectrum of appeal will also lie in the fact that he is a thirdgeneration winner of the Computaform Sprint.
Rafeef made an early impact as South Africa’s Leading First Season Sire in 2020-2021, and the champion athlete continues to make his presence felt, with his flagbearers this season including the graded stakes winners Beating Wings, Cats Pajamas, Frances Ethel, Mover And Shaker, Mrs Browning and, of course, the brilliant Thunderstruck.
Rafeef marked his 20th black-type winner and ended the last term in style when his son Cats Pajamas won the @Worldpool Gr2 Twitter Stakes on the season climax World Pool Gold Cup day.
Nearing his 500 international winner mark, Ridgemont’s five-time Gr1 winning stallion Canford Cliffs has also enjoyed another exceptional season, with his exciting Listed Ruffian Stakes winner Almond Sea, victorious in four of her five starts. Canford Cliffs’ son
Meridius sealed his berth in the Hollywoodbets Durban July, with an impressive performance to win the Gr3 Jubilee Stakes.
A R3,6 million yearling of his year Ridgemont’s Gr1 winning stallion Potala Palace enjoyed the distinction of landing the final feature of the SA Champions Season when his daughter Red Palace won the Riding High Together Gr2 Gold Bracelet, just hours after another of his daughters, Frozen Fantasy, ran third behind champion Quid Pro Quo in the Gr1 Douglas Whyte Stakes.
From the family of Sadler’s Wells, Nureyev and Fairy King, Potala Palace is a son of Singspiel, whose sire In The Wings is also paternal grandsire of Goliath -winner of the 2024 Gr1 King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes.
A R4,4 million yearling, SA Triple Crown and multiple Grade 1 winner Malmoos arrived at Ridgemont in 2022 with an impressive record of seven wins from 1200m to 2450m, and has the distinction of being the last Grade 1-winning son of multiple champion sensation Captain Al.
Malmoos displayed the stamp of a top-class racehorse, boasting an eclectic mix of speed and stamina, and has been well supported in his first two seasons, stamping his progeny with his trademark athleticism.
A son of multiple Australian champion sire Snitzel, the blue-blooded Real Gone Kid was one of the fastest gallopers, reeling off six victories before standing his first season in 2022.
Hailing from a wonderful female line, Real Gone Kid is a son of Equus Champion, and Gr1 Cape Fillies Guineas and Gr1 Woolavington 2000 champion In The Fast Lane – a daughter of seven times South African champion sire Jet Master. His first yearlings will enter the sales ring in 2025.
The world-class miler and US Grade 1 winner Hit The Road (USA), a son of internationally acclaimed sire More Than Ready, is the newest addition to the top team.
Ridgemont’s Craig Kieswetter confirmed that the beautifully bred, tough and durable miler with the dazzling turn of foot has been purchased in partnership with fellow leading breeders, Wilgerbosdrift & Mauritzfontein.
Out of the US Ranger mare Highway Mary, a three-parts sister to Gr1 winner and sire War Command, Hit The Road is bred along a very powerful sire line.
From the female family of Roberto’s champion producing sire Silver Hawk and recently retired
multiple Gr1 winner Charles Dickens, Hit The Road is bred on the very successful cross of More Than Ready over Danzig line mares – predominantly through Danehill – that has produced multiple stars.
“There is a lot of anticipation and excitement in the South African breeding industry at the moment and the feeling is no different here at Ridgemont. All seven of our stallions have been well subscribed and we are looking forward to welcoming mares, and their owners, in anticipation of helping them breed their next champion,” concluded Craig Carey.
While he has some way to go to ever match the feats of a former local hero in Hear The Drums, Gqeberha sprinter Cruise Control notched his 12th career victory in facile fashion at Fairview on Friday with another smooth win in the R175 000 Non Black-Type Speedsters Stakes, a feature he won as a 3yo.
Gallopers with built-in jets like Cruise Control boasts tend to garner their own following amongst the racing public, and the uncomplicated Gavin Smith-trained son of Querari beat his five rivals as a popular 5-10 favourite.
Purchased in training from Mauritius-based owner Vicky Veeramootoo earlier this year, Cruise Control was marking his first victory for the KZN champion owner syndicate. The victory came in the wake of providing them with plenty of thrills during the SA Champion Season when he ran 0,30 lengths off Tarry star Lucky Lad in the Gr1 Golden Horse Sprint and was then not disgraced in both of the Gr2 Post Merchants and the Gr1 Mercury Sprint, before returning to the Windy City, where he is simply lethal.
Sporting Post-sponsored jockey Lous Mxothwa has ridden the ace five times for five wins and earned the easiest commission of the season as Cruise Control (5-10) toyed with his opposition to beat Blue Holly (8-1) by 3,75 lengths in a time of 55,22 secs for the 1000m.
Cape raider Speed Machine was a further 1,25 lengths away in third.
Cruise Control broke the Fairview 800m track record on debut in December 2021 and was raced for the first part of his career by Mauritius based owner Vicky Veeramootoo, who went to R200 000 for him at Nationals.
A Boland Stud-bred son of the outstanding Querari (Oasis Dream), he is out of the Sail From Seattle mare, Eurythmics.
Cruise Control has won 12 races with 3 places from 21 starts for stakes of R926 563.
Maybe we are pushing the envelope by mentioning a horse who has yet to win a stakes race, albeit placed at Gr1 level, in the same breath as the Summerhill bred Hear The Drums – the most successful racehorse in South African modern era history in terms of number of wins.
Foaled in 2002 he earned over R1 000 000 in stakes, having 65 Starts, 35 of them wins (including placing in two Gr1 events – the 2009 and 2010 Cape Flying Championships WFA, as well as numerous Listed Races) and 19 places.
The 2024 East Cape Awards were held at Fairview Racecourse on Friday 6 September. Hosted by leading horse racing operator 4Racing, the awards celebrated and honored the outstanding achievements of Nelson Mandela Bay Racing’s top performers.
The evening was an intimate affair, showcasing Fairview’s finest and celebrating an exciting season.
The awards ceremony announced deserving winners across 18 categories, each awarded for their exceptional contributions to the sport.
The highlight of the evening was the award of Horse of the Season – presented to the Allan Greeff-trained Joy And Peace, who also walked away with Champion 3 Year old filly and Champion Polytrack Filly.
Bred by Wilgerbosdrift & Mauritzfontein, the Halo Syndicate-raced Joy And Peace is by Varsfontein resident Master Of My Fate (Jet Master), out of the Spectrum mare Amazing Grace.
Not unexpectedly, Alan Greeff sealed yet another champion trainer title, while the veteran’s stable jockey Richard Fourie will have more silverware to find place for at home after a sensational season.
The awards were determined through a voting process led by Henk Steenkamp, Chairman of the panel, along with judges Nico Krisiotis and Neil Pretorius.
“4Racing is committed to celebrating excellence, highlighting the steadfast dedication and outstanding talent within the horse racing community. The East Cape Awards serves as a tribute to the passion and dedication shared by all involved in this thrilling sport. Congratulations to all the winners and nominees, whose contributions have further enhanced the framework of racing in Gqeberha. Together, we continue to elevate the standard of excellence in our beloved sport,” said Fundi Sithebe, 4Racing CEO.
4Racing extended its congratulations to all the winners and nominees on yet another successful East Cape Awards.
• Media release by 4Racing on Friday 6 September 2024.
Veteran Summerveld trainer Paul Lafferty has called for something to be done about the handicapping of 3yo’s in South Africa.
“Something has to be done – we can’t be steamrollered like this,” he added while speaking in the post-race interview of his postmaiden winner View Of The World (rated 84) for owner John Finlayson after the fifth race, an MR 76 Handicap, at Hollywoodbets Scottsville on Sunday.
A visibly frustrated Laff said that ‘you win a race and you’re an 80 or 90’.
“Yes, we think View Of The World is a nice horse, but we had to claim 4kgs again today,” he lamented, explaining that he thought so highly of his charge that he had bought the Erik The Red half- sister before Sunday’s winner had even won.
“Look at Frank Robinson’s maiden. He’s an 86 and ran unplaced in the second today!”
He was referring to My Boy Lollipop who was having his eighth start and ran below midfield in the 1200m Maiden Plate.
“It’s making me mad. And I’m not alone. It’s bad for the public, it’s bad for trainers, it’s bad for owners,” he concluded.
In the very next race, Lunarcam’s part-owner Brian Airey, who along with Dr Manfred Rohwer, was enjoying his first ever six-time winner, came out in support of Paul Lafferty’s comments.
The Sporting Post is aware that the National Horseracing Authority Handicappers annually review the handicap performances of the threeyear-old crop after the first two months of the current season.
The regulator has stated in years past that the NHA Handicappers are tasked with ensuring that all horses in handicaps have an equal chance of winning as per the rules of the NHA.
Rule: 47.3.2 states that a handicap, shall be a race in which the weights to be carried by the HORSES are allocated by the handicapper for the purpose of equalising their chances of winning.
The NHA have noted previously that there is a trend that the three-year-old crop consistently outperform their older rivals. This is apparently likely due to their freshness in racing, their propensity to improve more rapidly than older horses, and the likelihood that trainers take advantage of the favourable WFA for the more mature three-year-old’s early in the season.
The Sporting Post has requested the National Horseracing Authority provide a counter argument for the suggestion that they have got the 3yo handicapping as badly wrong as has been suggested.
This will be published if a response is received.
In a world increasingly shaped by social consciousness and activism, fueled by a sensationalist media corps, horseracing finds itself at a sensitive and potentially critical juncture.
Globally, the industry is under growing scrutiny and facing a barrage of criticism, as concerns about animal welfare, transparency, and ethical practices dominate public discourse.
In South Africa, there are some who believe that our challenges in racing are as distinctive as the political issues confronting our country— unique, shielded from global influences, and best addressed within our own frameworks.
However, while we may craft solutions for local problems, we cannot escape the industry’s most pressing global challenge: perception.
Australian Vicky Leonard, speaking at last week’s Asian Racing Conference (ARC), warned that a media-driven horse welfare scandal could cause irreversible damage. She suggested that, as a united global industry, we should be ready to counter it.
The youthful Leonard established a racingspecialised marketing and ideas company, ‘Kick Collective’, (www.kickcollective.co) following a welfare crisis that brought the
Kick Collective’s Vicky Leonard | Credit: 4Racing
greyhound industry in Australia to its knees in 2015.
She recounted: “The impact was severe. (Studying at the time), the harsh reality hit as my classmates saw all racing – not just greyhound racing – as a cruel, outdated spectacle. (The fallout from the greyhound industry) had tarnished the reputation of all animal-related sports in their eyes. It made me realise how exposed to public condemnation from misinformation we really were.”
Leonard, who has immersed herself in the study of ‘perception marketing’, noted that the 2020 death of Epsom Derby winner Antony Van Dyk in the Melbourne Cup (and other incidents) exposed severe shortcomings in the availability of resources and data to defend the industry.
Due to eroded trust, information disseminated by institutions, politicians or journalists are no longer seen as accurate. Those in power are not held to high standards of accountability. “(Passionate racing people), most in their 20s, were trying to defend the industry but were struggling to find the facts and easily accessible data to back up their personal experiences. The information just didn’t exist.”
Leonard said it was “terrifyingly clear” that our industry’s silence in addressing misinformation
makes us complicit in its consequences and invites disaster. By remaining quiet, we risk being perceived as having something to hide, leading the public to form their own negative conclusions.
Her advice is that we must collectively pull our heads out of the sand and “get real,” acknowledging that significant improvements are needed in various areas to pass the “pub test” – the standard of authenticity and fairness expected by the average person.
Kick Collective’s three-step blueprint entails:
• Get Real: Establish the shortcomings and face the skeletons. Compile data and gather accurate information.
• Get Organised: Use the science and data to create content. React and respond transparently when issues arise. Educate stakeholders and fans. Develop plans for addressing potential crises.
• Get Loud and Proud: Build and empower a passionate community that has your back. Talk about horseracing with informed confidence. Confidently engage with the public. Turn potential disasters into opportunities to demonstrate the industry’s commitment to excellence and progress.
This proactive approach was applauded by Heather Morkel, CEO of South Africa’s Thoroughbred Breeders Association (TBA). She said that, locally, the fundamentals were in place, but that there is work to be done.
Thoroughbreds who enter the sport are microchipped and registered, and that the functions of control and monitoring all starts and ends with the operator, the National Horseracing Authority (NHA).
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Even at the age of 58, Piere Strydom has few equals in the saddle. The evergreen hero travelled to Vereeniging last Thursday for a 100% strike rate from two rides that saw him bring up his record-breaking 5555th winner milestone.
It’s been just under two years since Striker registered his 5500th winner on Admiralty Arch for Barend Botes at the Vaal in November 2022, and while the strike-rate may have tapered off in recent years, he still makes it look relatively easy.
Partnering the Lammerskraal bred Visionaire gelding Dontshootthebarman for Clinton
Binda and the Hollywood Syndicate, Piere had relatively little to do to chalk up the consistent galloper’s fourth win from 20 starts when winning the 1000m Betway MR 80 Handicap rather easily.
That was Striker’s 5500th win of an extraordinary career.
His next win took substantially more effort, with the Drakenstein-bred son of Lancaster Bomber, Battleofbartberton, overtaken by his more fancied Azzie stablemate Claw and Smanga Khumalo at the 250m mark of the 2000m Betway MR 80 Handicap, before digging deep under a vintage ride to grab victory on the line.
Smanga Khumalo’s ride on the runner-up is the subject of a possible Stipes enquiry.
“I owed owner Nic Jonsson that after getting beat a few times on See It Again,” smiled the
veteran, before grabbing a beer and heading home after a successful day at the office.
With a record unparalleled in SA racing, Piere Strydom reached his 5 000-career winner milestone in November 2014. He is on record stating that the standout was the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Sprint in 2010, which he won on JJ the Jet Plane in 2010.
Piere Strydom is retained by the ASSM Syndicate whose nominee is Arun Chadha and whose other member is Warne Rippon.
Former SA Champion Jockey Warren ‘Wagga’ Kennedy has been named Jockey of the Year, after just his second season in New Zealand.
Kennedy made the brave decision to move his family to New Zealand in 2022 in his 40’s, and has been quick to make an impact.
Kennedy, 44, topped the NZ national premiership in 23-24 and was also the leading rider in terms of domestic stake earnings and black type wins.
His season included a memorable day at Pukekohe, on January 1, when he rode seven
winners at one of the biggest meetings of the year.
Warren’s wife Barbara recently took out her trainer’s licence.
The Sporting Post was unable to reach Kennedy to find out whether he was a Bok or All Black supporter on Saturday evening.
“Lance was a completely different class. He was as good a 3yo as anything else that I’ve trained at a similar stage in his career.” Sean Tarry, Multiple Champion Trainer
Stakes winning son of multiple champion Jet Master
Damline has produced multiple group winners
Powerful family of champions - Big Swinger, Duc Du Orleans, Rebel King
50% winners to runners
Covered 25 mares last season - limited opportunity prior to that Excellent fertility
r 5.000 live foal
It is no easy feat to stand among giants, but Expert Eye can now call himself king of the castle when holding court at Paardeberg Stud in South Africa.
Having stood alongside titans such as Frankel and Kingman at Banstead Manor Stud, the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Mile winner has settled into South African climes with aplomb. He arrived just as the Paarl-based stud was starting, and it has been some journey for all the residents, both human and equine.
Paardeberg has undergone a massive transformation in the last 12 months, with manager and esteemed breeder Sally Bruss leading the way in conjunction with British businessmen Steve Ajax and Charles Palmer.
Aside from the establishment of essential stud buildings and paddocks to house broodmares
and youngstock, it was announced last October that the fledgling stud had acquired Juddmonte’s young sire as its first stallion,
Not bad going for a place which was barely in its infancy at that moment in time.
Bruss says: “I worked for a leading stud called Lammerskraal Farm for over 30 years, I was the stud manager and also a director and shareholder. Mike Rattray, who owned it, reached an age of about 86 and he decided to sell, so then I was approached by these chaps from the UK and I said I’d look for a farm.
“It took a couple of years to find a place and eventually we bought an undeveloped farm; it was very run down. It’s quite remarkable what we’ve done, we moved here in October last year. We’ve had to build all the paddocks and stables from scratch, so it’s been quite an undertaking!
“We started off with about six mares and now we’ve got just under 30 mares – we’ve bought quite a few in the last 12 months and really upgraded our broodmare band now. We went to our first sale in April with ten foals we’d bred on another property. We will mostly sell the yearlings and race the odd filly.”
With all the work being taken to restore the former vineyard, the Paardeberg team wasn’t actively looking for a stallion. However, as can often be the case, an opportunity sprung up through word of mouth and was adjudged not-to-be-missed.
“We weren’t really looking because the stud is so new, but we were approached by my brother-in-law who knew Felipes [Lopes], who
worked at Juddmonte, and he said they were looking to sell Expert Eye.”
The son of Acclamation sprung to prominence at an early age, winning for owner-breeders Juddmonte and the Sir Michael Stoute yard on his debut as a two-year-old at Newbury and then running out an impressive winner of the Group 2 Vintage Stakes at Glorious Goodwood.
The following year he won the Group 3 Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot and the City Of York Stakes, then also Group 3, while also placing in the Group 1 Sussex Stakes and Prix du Moulin.
He couldn’t have gone out on any more of a high, winning the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Churchill Downs under Frankie Dettori a shade cosily, as the Racing Post’s in-running comment put it. His first crops have so far yielded a Group winner in Dick Poole Fillies’ Stakes scorer Juniper Berries and a Royal Ascot-winning juvenile in Chesham Stakes victress Snellen among a host of useful and tough winners.
“He’s just a chilled guy” | Credit: Paardeberg Stud
Other standout progeny includes last year’s Horris Hill Stakes second Witness Stand, a three-length winner of a competitive handicap at Glorious Goodwood this summer, the progressive California-based filly Royal Charter, and 2024 stakes-placed two-year-old Rock Hunter.
“He gets a good amount of winners and they seem to do well on firmer going,” says Bruss. “He does slightly lack stakes performers, but I thought that, because of his good action and the fact his progeny act on quicker going, he might well be suited to South Africa.
“We also don’t have anything from the Acclamation line. Acclamation has been a good sire and a really good sires of sires, while Expert Eye was a speedy horse with a good frame and good temperament.”It’s just as well Expert Eye has a good temperament for he had to endure a long journey over to his new home. The long-standing ban on the direct export of horses to the EU from South Africa was lifted in March this year, but the nine-year-old had to tolerate several quarantine hurdles
in Europe and South Africa last summer.
“The protocols have improved in the last couple of months, but he had to go through 90 days [of quarantine],” says Bruss. “He still had to do quarantine in Belgium for 60 days, as well as 30 days here, so it was a heck of a haul for him. He left in July and got to us in November!”
Despite all that, Expert Eye has acclimatised and taken well to his new surroundings.
“He’s settled in very well and is very relaxed,” continues Bruss. “When he got here in the summer, because the stud was so underdeveloped, he just lived out from day one. It was quite interesting because the Juddmonte guys were telling me he was really difficult to catch, but often, if you treat a horse like a horse, they can surprise you.
“We built the first barn for the maiden mares to go under lights and blankets for the first season and because we’ve had such bad weather with record rainfalls, I put him in the barn with all the fillies.
He’s just such a chilled dude, he’s got fillies next to him and fillies opposite him and he stands with his head out; you would never think he’s in there with a bunch of fillies.”
Excitingly, Expert Eye is set to receive a highquality book of mares for his first South African book. Having already covered two mares, he has been supported by some of the biggest studs in the country, no small matter given the fierce competition among stallion numbers.
Bruss says: “South Africa hasn’t been able to import stallions for a good many years and also the exchange rate made it difficult to buy anything decent. Of course, we get him in and 11 stallions go to stud in the same year; our
broodmare band here is under 2,000 and we’ve got about 65 registered stallions at stud.
“If you do the maths, it’s not really a bright picture, about six stallions cover 120 mares or more; obviously they get the best mares, which cuts it down for the rest. When that happened, we thought he’d get only our mares, but it looks like he’ll get 50, which has exceeded our expectations.
“We’re happy he’s being supported by the bigger studs, Ridgemont and Drakenstein have bought shares in him, and it’ll be more about quality than a bigger book of lesser mares.”
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Witness Stand (Expert Eye) wins the Whispering Angel Handicap at Goodwood by 3 lenghts over 1400m on 3rd August 2024, on good to firm ground.
Expert Witness (Expert Eye) won the Peter Bromwich Handicap at Epsom by 3/4 length over 2000m on 1st August 2024, on good to firm ground. (view the race here).
Stakes-winning mare Let’sbefrankbaby has run her final race in Australia, with a change of ownership resulting in the departure for the United States on Tuesday of the valuable daughter of Frankel.
The Gr3 SA Fillies Classic winner, who was trained by Robbie Griffiths and Mat de Kock, finished fifth first-up at Caulfield on August 31 but was subsequently purchased outright by US-based co-owner Gary Barber.
“It’s always disappointing when you lose a potential carnival horse but there is no sour grapes at all,” de Kock explained.
“Gary felt her most value as a broodmare would be selling her in America, so between the three owners they came to an agreement and he bought them out.
“I believe she is going to the broodmare sale in November, so I guess a lot of that (racing career) will be determined by how she travels and if they could squeeze in a race or two.
“We wish her and Gary all the best with what happens in America.”
The five-year-old was a five-time winner and finished sixth in the 2022 VRC Oaks as a AU$400,000 Inglis Easter Yearling purchase.
In other stable news, stalwart King Magnus and promising filly Tobeornottobe will resume at Flemington on Saturday. Stakes-winning filly Tobeornottobe boasts strong form lines around Hayasugi and Ameena and will tackle the Cap D’Antibes Stakes.
Stablemate Verdad is expected to take good improvement from his first-up run at The Valley last Saturday and will head to a Benchmark 84 contest over 1400 metres on September 28.
The stable will keep him between 1600 and 2000m this preparation, with eyes on the Seymour Cup in mid-October.
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Legendary trainer Sir Michael Stoute has announced he is to retire at the end of the current season, bringing to a close a glittering career spanning six decades.
The 78-year-old has been one of the most successful Flat trainers for over half a century, starting in 1972. He will be forever associated with the great Shergar, the ill-fated 1981 Derby winner, but was responsible for so many other champions including Singspiel, Workforce, North Light and Harbinger, who won the 2010 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes by 11 lengths.
Stoute has been champion UK trainer on ten occasions between 1985 and 2022, has six Derby’s among 16 British Classics, plus another 13 in Ireland, and to cap it all successfully raided some of the biggest prizes around the globe. These included the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Japan Cup, Dubai World Cup, Hong Kong Vase, and the Breeders’ Cup.
In a statement issued on Tuesday lunchtime he said: “I have decided to retire from training at the end of this season. I would like to thank all my owners and staff for the support they have given me over the years. It has been a great and enjoyable journey.”
The trainer first scored at the highest level when Blue Cashmere won the 1974 Nunthorpe Stakes and his most recent Group
1 winner was Bay Bridge, who landed the 2022 Champion Stakes at Ascot.
It was in the 1980s that Stoute really came into his own. The decade started on a high with Shergar and the late Walter Swinburn winning the Derby in spectacular fashion, by a record margin of 10 lengths.
Shergar enjoyed a golden summer with convincing victories in the Irish Derby and the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes. He was also subject of perhaps the most amazing mystery in the history of racing, being abducted from the Aga Khan’s stud in Ireland in 1983 and ransomed for £2 million. He was never found. It was generally believed to have been the work of the IRA.
Stoute ended that season champion trainer for the first time. Five more Derby triumphs followed starting with Shahrastani, who defeated Dancing Brave in 1986.
Six-time UK champion jockey Kieren Fallon paid tribute to the Freemason Lodge trainer. The Irishman was aboard for the next two Derby’s to go to Stoute – Kris Kin in 2003 and North Light in 2004 – as they formed a tremendous trainer-jockey partnership.
“He always got the best out of a horse; he was able to take a horse from a two-year-old until they retired and keep finding improvement. He was a genius around his horses and a gentleman to ride for,” said Fallon.
“North Light in particular was great. Winning the Derby was one of the great days because he was automatic – he was one of these lovely, big, easy horses to ride with no complications.”
“Sir Michael’s horses would never be over the top or fully tuned in, he would always leave a little bit for the next day and the next day, that was the great thing about him, there was
always just enough done. North Light by a mile was one of the best and the Russian Rhythm days as well, they were amazing.”
Stoute was knighted in 1998 for promotion of sports tourism in his hometown of Barbados.
Frankel stallion, Frantastic, has 50 mares waiting to be served at Suzette and Basie Viljoen’s Hopes and Dreams Stud. His arrival from the quarantine station in George is expected on or about 18 September. Suzette Viljoen is spending most of her time at the family’s Wellington farm these days. They have prepared a stable and paddock for Frantastic, their fledgling operation’s first stallion prospect.
She said: “We are super excited about him, we can’t wait. His food is already prepared. We’ll be sending him 40 of our own mares and he’s had 10 mare bookings from outside breeders. A few mares have already arrived. He’ll get several more. There are breeders who would like to see him in the flesh.”
Reports from the quarantine station is that Frantastic arrived from Johannesburg on 30 August for his required 14-day spell at the facility.
Quarantine master Caroline Berman said he walked off the float as if he hadn’t travelled at all.
Berman told: “He travelled through all the way, there were no stopovers. He stepped off relaxed and calm, which is unusual after such a long trip, ate up and settled in quick. He’s spent his days here walking in the paddock between 8am and about 4pm, getting enough exercise.”
Berman said that Frantastic had picked up weight. “He eats anything and cleans up his manger. He is a true gentleman with no fuss and frills. He has a beautiful temperament, likes to put his head on my shoulder. His demeanour is calm and professional, the Viljoens can look forward to his company.”
Frantastic is a full-brother to joint 2018 World Champion, four-time Group 1 winner and now red-hot sire, Cracksman, and was also trained by John and Thady Gosden.
He won at 2 and 3 years of age and twice from seven runs, over 1600m and 2000m respectively, before incurring a career-ending injury. He won on the all-weather and on turf, proving his versatility. He could have been anything had he stayed in training.
Leading Australian trainer Ciaron Maher suggests that every sport on earth has improved with sport science and horse racing should be no different. Data is something that doesn’t lie. Racing has always been a sport of opinions: that’s what it’s based on. I’ve always been wanting to push the boundaries of ‘why’ that opinion is the right decision or the wrong decision. EQUIMETRE
“ Our unique know-how comes from the alliance between data and equine physiology”
After a lengthy and dedicated career, Eric Fordred retired from race-riding in 2004 due to his commitment to his insurance business.
It so happened that at the same time, he was given the opportunity of establishing Absolute Equestrian Solutions, which focused on the building of training tracks, dressage and show-jumping arenas.
Eric writes that after a lengthy and dedicated career, I retired from race-riding in 2004 due to my commitment to my specialty insurance business. In a nutshell, it was designed by me as speciality cover for all disciplines of horse-riding, but more so for professional jockeys and other sports disciplines, such as rugby and soccer and is still available in the marketplace today.
During that period of time, I was given the opportunity of establishing Absolute Equestrian Solutions, which focused on the building of training tracks, dressage and jumping arenas. Some of the bigger arena’s we built were Val de Vie and Europa warm up.
I have since added Arioneo to my portfolio as part of Absolute Equestrian Services and am committed to lending my extensive experience to establish a presence for Arioneo as a technology within the racing industry.
Most notably, during the 2022/23 Cape Town Summer season, I worked with trainer Peter Muscutt, utilizing Arioneo to track and analyze horses’ performance. This collaboration has resulted in significant improvements in training outcomes, demonstrating the efficiency of his approach. In the last 3 weeks I have been training Peter's staff on how to use the Arioneo in the most effective and efficient way possible. During this time, through the Arioneo platform analysis we dedicated horses that would potentially win - we also deduced from Arioneo Data which horses might need another gallop or race, but most of all we learnt to trust the data!
Having completed my EquiScience Certification as an Equine Performance Analyst, alongside some very well-known racing personalities, such as, South African Racehorse owner Rosemary Waterman- Wentzel, (Equine Physiotherapist), Laura Fritz Harris (the veterinarian, specializing in ECG) and the Hong Kong Jockey Club Veterinarian Steve O Conner, who assists top Hong Kong Trainer Dougie Whyte.
I am now certified in the deployment and support of Arioneo systems, and my services include on-going support to ensure that users can fully leverage the technology. My commitment to simplifying complex analyses ensures that the data provided by Arioneo is easily interpreted and applied, empowering trainers to make data-driven decisions without the need for extensive technical exper tise.
As a result of the focus on the welfare and overall health of Racehorses, I decided to venture into technology that would not only assist trainers in adopting a science-based training methodology using the Arioneo Monitoring solution, but also to use the analytics to identify the underlying risks to the racehorses during their training and racing.
Arioneo technology represents the forefront of innovation in equine performance monitoring and analysis. This system is specifically designed to meet the rigorous demands of the racing industry, offering comprehensive data collection and analy tics that provide trainers with actionable insights.
Arioneo’s capabilities include:
Heart Rate
Evaluate your horses’ fitness and closely monitor the training workload.
Identify the optimal fitness to race.
Evaluate the recovery quality.
Analyse the heart rate zones and the energy production processes.
Watch for any heart rate abnormalities.
GPS: Speed, Distance, Acceleration
Quantify your horses’ speed abilities.
Monitor your horses’ top speed and ability to hold it.
Analyze split times and find the most suitable race accordingly.
Keep track of the speed evolution during workouts until the finish line
Locomotion and Stride data
Determine the stride profile and the preferred distance.
Quantify stride frequency and length to choose which distance to race.
Analyze the acceleration strategy.
Monitor symmetry and regularity to watch for any signs of lameness.
Evaluate the data evolution over the season.
`Identify areas for improvement and measure changes in physical ap titudes over time.
Has recovery improved from one period to the next? Is the V200 faster?
Easily compare multiple horses’ aptitudes
Identify which horses have the best physical abilities.
Individualize training according to the needs of each horse.
Collect and build a training history for the entire stable
With historical data collected and stored, you can easily detect an abnormal value and act quickly.
Watch for the warning signs.
Identify a bad recovery, an abnormal heart rate or a change in locomotion to act accordingly..
Closely monitor your horse’s workload to ensure a successful return to work and Racing after a break or injury.
Easily communicate data to your veterinary team to facilitate your horses’ care.
Remotely share data with your veterinarian to ensure a regular and complete follow-up. ECGs are automatically collected at each training session allowing trainers to investigate an anomaly retroactively and remotely.
By staying informed of the latest trends and technological advancements, Arioneo can offer solutions that are not only current but also future proof, providing long-term value to our clients.
Arioneo Case Studies :https://training.arioneo.com/en/arioneo-resources-case-studies/
The Role Of Data In Racehorse Pre-Training : https://Training.Arioneo.Com/En/The-Role-Of-Data-In-Racehorse-PreTraining/
How to make sure that my horse is ready to race? https://training.arioneo.com/en/blog-make-sure-horse-readyto-race/
How Ciaron Maher Racing has improved his striking rate with its equine sports science unit?
���� Australia | +500 horses
«Every sport in the world has improved with sport science and I always thought horse racing should be no different. The data is something that doesn’t lie. Racing has always been a sport of opinions: that’s what it’s based on. I’ve always been wanting to push the boundaries of “why” that opinion is the right decision or the wrong decision. By curating a sports science division, we’ve made a commitment to this, and see the results on the track.»
How David Menuisier adapts his racehorses’ routine according to their data?
�������� United Kingdom | 50 horses
«It can explain sometimes a poor performance. We got a new rider who started in March, April, maybe. Because of that system, I could tell you that he used to go far too fast to gather momentum and so his horses would kind of not do their best here, where it matters. At least you can actually put data and put science into what was wrong and correct it very quickly. This is a short run benefit of Arioneo.»
How did Douglas Whyte use the data to support his feelings?
���� Hong Kong | +60 horses
« It never lies to you. I can pick up on a problem way before it becomes a problem. People ask me why I still ride, and that’s one of the reasons I still ride because the beauty of it is if I can feel something out and I can go back and pick it up on a computer it’s just so satisfying, you know, two minds are better than one.»
Mikel Delzangles
Racehorse Trainer And Equimetre User Since 2018
«Thanks to EQUIMETRE we have additional parameters on the analysis of the performance and work of thehorses. As much as the trainer can be subjective from time to time, the machine remains objective. I think that with the analysis of both we can take correct decisions.
Meet with one of our consultants to learn more about EQUIMETRE
It is with deep regret that the South African Equine Health & Protocols NPC announces the passing of its Chairman David Abery.
David was an unsung hero of South Africa’s export drive, taking over the Chairmanship of SAEHP in 2021 when the organisation was severely struggling with fundraising to continue the export efforts.
David was instrumental in implementing the funding agreement with the Hong Kong Jockey Club and despite his ongoing health issues worked tirelessly with the team to further the goal of the export of horses from South Africa. David had experienced health problems in recent years. However he was recovering well from heart related issues.
SAEHP MD Adrian Todd said, “David was a true racing man, a champion of the game and a real unsung hero. The majority of people never knew just how much time and effort David put into the export drive, during his illness, we had numerous meetings and discussions in his hospital ward, he never gave in and was always there, working towards the end goal.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his partner Selina, sister Julie and family. South Africa has lost a true patriot and I a true friend.”
Defying history and testing track conditions, rising star Ka Ying Rising continued an irrepressible advance through Hong Kong’s sprint ranks with a record-breaking success in the HK$3.72 million Class 1 HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup Handicap at Sha Tin on Sunday in the opening meeting of the new season.
Illuminating gloomy conditions in front of a crowd of 42 556, Ka Ying Rising (135lb) set a weight-carrying record in the season-opening feature to cruise to his sixth victory from eight starts, clocking a slick 1m 08.03s in good-toyielding conditions.
Ridden confidently by Zac Purton, David Hayes’ four-year-old settled in second place behind stablemate Harmony N Blessed until the 300m mark before surging clear to win by a one and a quarter length from Beauty Waves (115lb), with Superb Capitalist (115lb) a further one and three quarters of a length further away in third.
Since 1997, no topweight has won the HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup and only two horses –The Duke in 2004 and Winner’s Way in 2018 – have carried 130lb to victory.
The two most recent winners of the race –Victor The Winner and Lucky Sweynesse –both carried 115lb before advancing to Group 1 triumphs in the same season.
By Shamexpress, Ka Ying Rising was unextended in victory but still managed to clock 21.94s for the final 400m on a track softened by rain.
David Hayes confirmed Ka Ying Rising would be aimed at the HK$5.35 million Gr2 Premier Bowl Handicap (1200m) on 20 October and HK$5.35 million Gr2 BOCHK Private Banking Jockey Club Sprint (1200m) on 17 November in preparation for the HK$26 million Gr1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) on 8 December.
Hayes said last season’s Hong Kong Champion Griffin and Most Improved Horse had defied convention to win.
“I was very nervous because common sense said a young horse carrying 135lb in testing conditions and giving a lot of good horses weight couldn’t win. But he did it brilliantly and I’m so proud of him. He’s a bit special, isn’t he?” Hayes said.
“Physically, he’s put on about 20lb and
mentally he’s a lot better according to Zac. That’s why I wanted to run him early in the season because he’s had a lot of time off. He defied logic then. A lot of smart people said the horse he beat, Beauty Waves, would be hard to beat.
“I think going forward it’s the most important thing that you’re not a one-dimensional sprinter and what’s good about him is he can follow and join – he doesn’t just have to lead.”
Purton, who finished the meeting with a quartet, said Ka Ying Rising effectively won the race with a blistering start.
“He absolutely flew the start and it won him the race. He got into the right spot without having to do too much work. The race was run at a nice rhythm for him, the track is not wet yet –it’s still racing quite well, so I don’t think that
was an issue for him to carry the bit weight,” Purton said.
“He pulled himself into it on straightening, which I really liked because he had the big weight and you don’t want him get outsprinted, so I allowed him to let down under his own steam, which was ideal because he did it in a nice fashion.”
Purton said it was too early to predict how high Ka Ying Rising could yet climb.
“He’s won a Group 3 race, so he’s got a long way to go – we’ll find out,” he said.
Purton began his quest for an eighth championship with victory in the opening race of the season – the Class 5 Kowloon Peak Handicap (1600m) – aboard Chris Sotrained Go Go Go and hopes the gelding’s
breakthrough triumph will prove to be a positive omen.
“The last time I won the first race of the season, I broke the record for most number of wins (179 in 2022/23) in a season, so let’s hope history repeats,” the Australian said.
Purton also partnered Dennis Yip’s Fast Network, who scored impressively in the Class 4 Lantau Peak Handicap (1000m) as Britney Wong marked her Hong Kong debut with a fine third placing aboard David Hall-trained Glorious Expert.
Purton completed a bountiful afternoon with victory in the last race, the Class 3 Sunset Peak Handicap (1200m) aboard Danny Shumtrained Gorgeous Win. Shum also struck with Harmony N Home in the second section of the Ma On Shan Handicap (1400m) under Matthew
Poon, who also figured atop Tony Cruz’s Super Fortune in the second section of the Class 4 Yi Tung Shan Handicap (1200m).
Mark Newnham opened his seasonal account with Same To You’s success in the Class 5 Lin Fa Shan Handicap (1200m) under Brenton Avdulla before the Australian horseman secured a double with My Wish in the first section of the Class 4 Yi Tung Shan Handicap (1200m) under Luke Ferraris.
Hayes teamed with Ferraris’ South African compatriot Lyle Hewitson to land the first
section of the Class 4 Ma On Shan Handicap (1400m) aboard Amazing Run to launch his 2024/25 positively before Manfred Man combined with Alexis Badel to land the Class 2 Tai Mo Shan Handicap (1400m) with talented Chiu Chow Spirit.
Turnover on the season-opening meeting was HK$1,327.6 million, an 8.6% increase on the corresponding meeting last year, while total attendance – including 4,962 at Happy Valley – reached a combined 47,518, the largest attendance since 2019, and an increase of 11,511 on last season’s meeting.
A huge crowd befitting the last running of the SG$300 000 Gr1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup got the result they wanted after Singapore’s best galloper, Lim’s Kosciuszko, won the highlight race at Kranji on Saturday.
Lim’s Kosciuszko was sent out favourite in the elite 11-horse field after King Of Sixty-One was scratched prior to the meeting, while Lim’s Saltoro and Golden Monkey the equal second favourites.
On jumping, the two Lim’s horses were prominent early before the race panned out as expected with Mr Black Back (Manoel Nunes) crossing from his wide gate 11 to lead on settling and Lim’s Saltoro (Wong Chin Chuen) trailing in second.
Meanwhile, Lim’s Kosciuszko (Marc Lerner) was tucked in behind his stablemate and Dream Alliance (Ryan Curatolo) sat handier than expected in the first four.
Into the straight, Lim’s Saltoro was quick to eyeball Mr Black Back in the lead and with Lim’s Kosciuszko, Dream Alliance and Golden Monkey (Kyle Wilson-Taylor) putting in a challenge at the 300m, the race was set up for a cracking finish.
As things got serious at the furlong marker, the son of Kermadec’s champion qualities came to the fore and with Lim’s Saltoro faltering and the other on-pace brigade battling late, it was race over and redemption for Lim’s Kosciuszko after he got beat into second in the same race last year.
It was also a terrific guide to next month’s Gr1 Grand Singapore Gold Cup as Raising Sixty-One (Bruno Queiroz) ran on very well in the closing stages to finish a length back in second. Lim’s Saltoro held on well to finish another half-a-length back in third, a neck ahead of an eye-catching Hole In One (Bernardo Pinheiro) in fourth.
The winning time was 1 min 47.08 secs for the 1800m on the Long Course. Lim’s Kosciuszko’s 22nd win in 27 starts took his earnings to over SG$3.5 million for the Lim’s Stable.
The win was also the two-time Singapore Horse of the Year’s 10th win at Group 1 level and gave trainer Daniel Meagher and owner Mr Lim Siah Mong their first win in the prestige race.
“It’s been a jinx, Ethan, for (owner) Mr Lim and myself,” said the Australian handler when asked about the only missing Group 1 win on his resume by racing presenter Ethan Mills after the race.
“Three years ago, Lim’s Lightning got scratched before (the race) and then we got beat last year by (trainer) Ricardo’s (Le Grange) horse (Hongkong Great).
“So, it’s good to get the win. He’s a great horse and Singapore should be getting around him as it’s our last year.
“He just does what he has to do these days. He’s getting a bit older and not winning as dominantly but that’s win number 22.
“A great ride by Marc. He was very patient, neither hurt him to the line nor gave him a gutbusting run, which was great.
“I’m very proud of him (Lim’s Kosciuszko).”
Meagher was also glowing in his praise for Lim’s Saltoro after the five-year-old son of Shamexpress had an interrupted preparation and was looking forward to the Grand Singapore Gold Cup.
“I’m also very proud of (Lim’s) Saltoro. He’s had a bit of a troublesome week. He wasn’t really good going into this race. We had a few issues with him but he’s put in a gallant performance.
“It’s not going to be easy for ‘Kosi’ as he would probably carry 58.5kgs or something like that (in the Grand Singapore Gold Cup) but he’s won it before (in 2023) with a lot against him.
“I think the other horse (Lim’s Saltoro) will carry a light weight and he’s going to be in with a really big show.
“I’m very proud to win so many Group 1 races and the team has done a great job.”
Lerner, who had a treble on the day with Lucky Goal in the SG$30,000 Hongkong Great 2023 Stakes, a Class 5 race over 1200m and Silver Dragon in the SG$30,000 Top Knight 2020 Stakes, a Class 5 race Division 1 race over 1400m, was just in awe of ‘Kosi’ after his epic win.
“He’s just getting a bit older,” explained the Frenchman.
“As you can see at the 400m, when (Lim’s) Saltoro went for it, he got us a bit out of the bridle.
“But he’s (Lim’s Kosciuszko) a champion. He just picked up. I was a bit scared because when he gets in front, he knows the job is done and would tend to relax, so I had to keep him to his work.
“It’s good to win this race for Mr Lim and Daniel as that was the only one (Group 1 race win) missing (on their achievement records).”
On turning the tables on Group 1 Raffles Cup (1600m) winner Lim’s Saltoro, Lerner suggested that “fresher” legs was the key this time.
“The difference was the four weeks in between races (Raffles Cup and QEII Cup), because
I’m pretty sure we would have got it (Raffles Cup) on the line with fresher legs,” he said, referring to the fact that Lim’s Kosciuszko was on a back-up in the Raffles Cup, only two weeks after he won the Group 1 Lion City Cup (1200m) on 28 July.
“Take nothing away from Lim’s Saltoro. He’s a great horse. We had the perfect run but ‘Kosi’’s just getting a bit older. He doesn’t win it as easy as before but he gets the job done.
“I’m happy. Three winners was superb. Now, we just focus on either (Lim’s) Saltoro or (Lim’s) Kosciuszko (in the Grand Singapore Gold Cup). I just want one of them to win.”
The Grand Singapore Gold Cup will be held on the final race meeting in Singapore on 5 October.
