Legislate – Snaith’s big gun last season
Cape-based trainers won 50% of the Gr1 races run in the KZN Champions Season last term and the Mother City Marauders are set to plunder the riches yet again when Gold Circle offer their R44 million festival of high quality racing again from May to July this year.
The stakes and the playing fields have changed somewhat in 2015 for the annual coming together of the powerhouses of South African horseracing.
With last season’s star attraction Beach Beauty now retired to the paddocks of Drakenstein Stud, it could be the dual L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate and J&B Met winner Futura who will be the talking horse of the season.
His recent transfer to the Justin Snaith team adds a new dimension of strength to an already impressive attack and the Dynasty colt’s progress will be followed with great interest by racing enthusiasts.
With many folk divided on the shock move from Crawford, there will be plenty of needle and interest as he is prepared for a tilt at the Vodacom Durban July which is run on 4 July.
Normanz seen winning the Golden Horse Sprint
Beyond the annual and time tested Scottsville Jackpot of Gr1 sprint features which will be held on Saturday 5 May, Greyville will play host to the majority of the features, with a few of the minor events switched to the polytrack – a fact that will please some and irk others.
Clairwood Racecourse, the lifetime base for many of the Cape champions, closed its gates forever in August 2014 and the new-look and revamped Summerveld provides a new challenge at altitude for the likes of visitors like Brett Crawford, Dean Kannemeyer, Mike Bass, Joey Ramsden and Justin Snaith.
Then there is the ‘discovery’ of a long hidden gem in the Ashburton Training Centre, from where KZN Champion trainer Duncan Howells enjoyed his own multiple Gr1 glory and was crowned last season.
Described as the racing centre with the best tracks, the most pleasant atmosphere and the least politics, Weichong Marwing has moved into Ashburton lock, stock and barrel and with the support of Maine Chance Farms and Hassen Adams, amongst others, he will be looking to build on Bilateral’s Gr1 Golden Slipper victory – and Marwing has made the Greyville polytrack his second home from home with a terrific strike rate.
Weiho Marwing’s Bilateral
The closure of Clairwood means that two important R1 million Gr1 races will be run at Greyville, where the barrier draw is set to play an important role and is bound to lead to the inevitable hard-luck story or two.
The Rising Sun Gold Challenge was won in sensational fashion last year by Joey Ramsden’s King Of Pain, who travels to Turffontein this weekend for the Gr1 Horse Chestnut Stakes.
King Of Pain dictated matters and held on to beat champion racemare Beach Beauty in a thriller. The Rising Sun day was a highlight on the Clairwood calendar and supported in numbers by the local community.
It will be interesting to see how they adapt the show to Greyville and with a change in timing on the programme.
The R1 miilion Gr1 Mercury Sprint, won in such sensational style by Mike Bass’ Jet Master mare Fly By Night last year, is run over 1200m and Greyville will put a whole new spin on this weight for age test won by stars like JJ The Jet Plane and What A Winter.
Watch this space!
| FEATURE RACE PROGRAMME | |||||||||
| DATE | DAY | VENUE | RACE | GR | DIST | STAKE | AGE / SEX | RACE CONDITIONS | |
| 02-May | Sat | Greyville P/T/D | KRA Guineas | 2 | 1600 | R 600 000 | 3 y o | Level Weights | |
| Independent On Saturday Drill Hall Stakes | 2 | 1400 | R 350 000 | Open | WFA + Penalties | ||||
| KRA Fillies Guineas | 2 | 1600 | R 300 000 | 3 y o Fill | Level Weights | ||||
| 10-May | Sun | Greyville P/T/D | Highland Night Cup | NB | 2400 | R 120 000 | Open | Conditions | |
| 15-May | Fri | Greyville P/T/N | Betting World 1900 | 2 | 1900 | R 350 000 | Open | Conditions | |
| 17-May | Sun | Greyville P/T/D | East Coast Cup | L | 2000 | R 135 000 | F & M | Conditions | |
| 23-May | Sat | Scottsville | Tsogo Sun Sprint | 1 | 1200 | R 1 000 000 | Open | MR Handicap | |
| City of Pietermaritzburg Fillies Sprint | 1 | 1200 | R 600 000 | F & M | WFA | ||||
| Tsogo Sun Gold Medallion | 1 | 1200 | R 600 000 | 2 y o | Level Weights | ||||
| Allan Robertson Championship | 1 | 1200 | R 600 000 | 2 y o Fill | Level Weights | ||||
| 30-May | Sat | Greyville P/T | Daily News 2000 | 1 | 2000 | R 2 000 000 | 3 y o | Level Weights | |
| Woolavington 2000 | 1 | 2000 | R 1 000 000 | 3 y o Fill | Level Weights | ||||
| Lonsdale Stirrup Cup | 3 | 2400 | R 250 000 | Open | MR Race | ||||
| 06-Jun | Sat | Greyville P/T/D/N | Rising Sun Gold Challenge | 1 | 1600 | R 1 000 000 | Open | WFA | |
| Tibouchina Stakes | 2 | 1400 | R 250 000 | F & M | WFA + Penalties | ||||
| Cup Trial | 3 | 1800 | R 250 000 | Open | MR Handicap | ||||
| Gatecrasher Stakes | L | 1400 | R 135 000 | 2 y o | Set Weights | ||||
| Devon Air Stakes | L | 1400 | R 135 000 | 2 y o Fill | Set Weights | ||||
| Durban Dash | Poly | NB | 1100 | R 150 000 | 3 y o | Conditions | |||
| 13-Jun | Sat | Scottsville | KZN Winter Challenge 1200m | NB | 1200 | R 200 000 | Open | MR Handicap | |
| KZN Winter Challenge 1600m | NB | 1600 | R 200 000 | Open | MR Handicap | ||||
| KZN Winter Challenge 2000m | NB | 1950 | R 200 000 | Open | MR Handicap | ||||
| 19-Jun | Fri | Greyville P/T/N | Post Merchants | 2 | 1200 | R 350 000 | Open | Conditions | |
| 21-Jun | Sun | Greyville P/T/D | Track And Ball Derby | 2 | 2400 | R 400 000 | Open | WFA + Penalties | |
| Gold Circle Oaks | 2 | 2400 | R 300 000 | F & M | WFA + Penalties | ||||
| 28-Jun | Sun | Greyville P/T/D | KZN Breeders Million Mile | NB | 1600 | R 1 000 000 | Open | Conds Kznbr | |
| KZN Breeders 1200 | Poly | NB | 1200 | R 200 000 | Open | Conds Kznbr | |||
| KZN Breeders F&M 1200 | Poly | NB | 1200 | R 200 000 | F & M | Conds Kznbr | |||
| KZN Breeders 1600 | Poly | NB | 1600 | R 200 000 | Open | Conds Kznbr | |||
| KZN Breeders F&M 1600 | Poly | NB | 1600 | R 200 000 | F & M | Conds Kznbr | |||
| KZN Breeders 1900 | Poly | NB | 1900 | R 200 000 | Open | Conds Kznbr | |||
| KZN Breeders F&M 1900 | Poly | NB | 1900 | R 200 000 | F & M | Conds Kznbr | |||
| KZN Breeders Juvenile Plate | Poly | NB | 1200 | R 200 000 | 2 y o | Conds Kznbr LW | |||
| KZN Breeders Fillies Juvenile Plate | Poly | NB | 1200 | R 200 000 | 2 y o Fill | Conds Kznbr LW | |||
| 04-Jul | Sat | Greyville P/T/D/N | Vodacom Durban July | 1 | 2200 | R 3 500 000 | Open | MR Conditions | |
| Jonsson Workwear Garden Province Stakes | 1 | 1600 | R 750 000 | F & M | WFA | ||||
| Golden Horseshoe | 1 | 1400 | R 600 000 | 2 y o | Level Weights | ||||
| Golden Slipper | 1 | 1400 | R 600 000 | 2 y o Fill | Level Weights | ||||
| Gold Vase | 2 | 3000 | R 500 000 | Open | Conditions | ||||
| Campanajo 2200 | 3 | 2200 | R 500 000 | Open | MR Handicap | ||||
| Thukela Handicap | L | 1600 | R 135 000 | Open | MR Handicap | ||||
| Ethekwini Sprint | Poly | NB | 1200 | R 120 000 | 3 y o | Conditions | |||
| KZN Yearling Sale Million | NB | 1300 | R 1 000 000 | 2 y o | Level Weights | ||||
| 18-Jul | Sat | Greyville P/T/D | Mercury Sprint | 1 | 1200 | R 750 000 | Open | WFA | |
| Umkhomazi Stakes | 2 | 1200 | R 200 000 | 2 y o | Set Weights | ||||
| The Debutante | 2 | 1200 | R 200 000 | 2 y o Fill | Set Weights | ||||
| Off To Stud Handicap | Poly | L | 1600 | R 150 000 | 4 yo+ F&M | 4 yr+ Conditions | |||
| Queen Palm Handicap | L | 2400 | R 135 000 | F & M | Conditions | ||||
| 25-Jul | Sat | Greyville P/T/D/N | eLan Property Group Gold Cup | 1 | 3200 | R 1 250 000 | Open | MR Race | |
| Champions Cup | 1 | 1800 | R 1 000 000 | Open | Conditions | ||||
| Premiers Champion Stakes | 1 | 1600 | R 600 000 | 2 y o | Level Weights | ||||
| Thekwini Stakes | 1 | 1600 | R 600 000 | 2 y o Fill | Level Weights | ||||
| Gold Bracelet | 2 | 2000 | R 350 000 | F & M | WFA + Penalties | ||||
| Umngeni Handicap | Poly | L | 1000 | R 150 000 | Open | MR Handicap | |||
| The Darley Arabian | Poly | L | 1600 | R 150 000 | Open | MR Handicap | |||
