De Kock Racing has confirmed that jockey Callan Murray has been booked to ride up-and-coming 3yo Immediate Edge (Vercingetorix) in the 2025 Hollywoodbets Durban July on Saturday, 5 July.
He replaces the gelding’s recent rider, Kabelo Matsunyane, who has a commitment to Robyn Klaasen’s runner, Purple Pitcher.
Callan Murray has been booked to ride Immediate Edge (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
Immediate Edge moved into the Top 20 on the 2025 July log following his commanding win in the Grade 3 Jubilee Stakes at Turffontein on 8 June. He has shown marked improvement at the right time, going into the big race.
At his rating of 108, he will carry the lowest weight of 53kg. This puts him well into a weight bracket of runners (50-56kg) which has produced 15 three-year-old winners in the last 30 years.
Whether Immediate Edge is in the class of the likes of previous three-year-old winners like London News (who won under 52kg), Dynasty (53kg), Do It Again (54kg), Kommetdieding (53kg) or stable companions Grey’s Inn (50kg) and Bold Silvano (55.5kg) remains to be seen, but he has plenty of class about him and is getting better by the day.
Murray (28) will have to shed 3kg to get from his current 56kg down to 53kg, but he said that he’ll be on the mark, on race day. “Several years ago, I had to get down to 51kg to ride Mount Pleasant in the Joburg Spring Challenge and last year I had to get down to 53kg for a ride in the Adelaide Cup.”
He worked with a dietician during a spell in Hong Kong and said: “I know what to do, and I started two weeks ago so that I could lose weight gradually on whole foods and restricting my calorie intake. This way, I lose the kilograms without losing strength, and I’m very excited to ride Immediate Edge. I am on target.”
Murray said he hasn’t sat on Immediate Edge before, but that he will be doing regular track work with his mount in the build-up to the July. “He is being prepared at Randjesfontein, where I will be spending most of my time in the next few weeks. I look forward to riding him.”
