Please Note: South African Quartet Pools with fractional betting offered at Pontefract (UK) – 21 June 2026

ALISTAIR COHEN

The abandonment of racing in Cape Town last Tuesday due to a waterlogged track has necessitated the feature races to move to what would be an ordinary day at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth today. The card suddenly has a classy look and racing fans could have some fun with some individuals who decided to stay at home this winter rather than head to Durban where they would be capable of competing with the best.

The Winter Mile, race 6 over 1600m could be best suited to Please Be True with only 51kg on his back. Please Be True is rated 30 points lower than the highest mark of Sugar Mountain off 122. He should carry 15kg less than the well-proven Sugar Mountain according to strict handicapping. He carries 10,5kg less but his runs since a break have been revealing that he must be close to breaking into the winners’ box. Plus, Sugar Mountain has not been at the peak of his powers of late.

Please Be True returned from a three-month rest in late April. He was run in a sprint and gave a pleasing reintroduction over a trip short of his best. He stayed on beautifully behind Give It Laldy beaten by only two lengths. His next start was the adequate step forward when he finished second behind Chasingtherainbow over 1400m at this course. He is 2kg better off with Chasingtherainbow who was so ready. That should give Please Be True enough hope to potentially turn the deficit. Mickaelle Michel takes the ride.

Beware The Bomb has been whispered about lately. She could be a filly to follow in the coming months. She is stable companion to Please Be True out of Justin Snaith’s barn. She was rested for nearly a year between May 2025 and April 2026 so to suggest that she would have needed her last run would be an understatement. It was a neat effort when she ended up 4,5 lengths behind Café Culture in the Champagne Stakes over 1200m. Café Culture nearly won a Grade 2 at Hollywoodbets Scottsville a few weeks later while Beware The Bomb would have found that 1200m distance too short. She will come on further with this run under her belt but one can expect a good showing under Andrew Fortune.

Chasingtherainbow wrote his trainer and owner one of the stories of the year when he won last time. He recently transferred to the yard of Rob Barrett who took out his license a few months ago. He was Barrett’s first runner and he won with ease, possibly delivering his career best in the process. He is owned by Barrett’s grandfather. There was not a dry eye in the house. Richard Fourie retains the ride. Life is a little harder at the weights but there is no reason to suggest that he cannot win.

The Us Of A could be in the right place at the right time in the supporting feature, the Winter Sprint, race 7 over 1200m. Being a feature, this will be down the straight. He has a blistering turn of foot. He has showed his effectiveness at this level and Richard Fourie gets the most out of him. His main rivals have their claims but valid reasons why they might be vulnerable for now.

His last run was a superb effort finishing second behind Café Culture over this course and distance in the same Listed Champagne Stakes highlighted by Beware The Bomb. The Us Of A must be in good heart because there was a desperate plea from his connections to reschedule this race which was never up for debate.

All The Rage could ultimately end up being the best horse in the field. The three-year-old had little chance at the weights in the Khaya Stables Diadem Stakes last time but he was not disgraced finishing sixth behind Questioning who has had an unreal 2026. He is back from a break and not being seen in nearly four months suggests he will step forward with the run. This is not his “cup final” and his bigger picture could be revealing.

There are two apprentice races on the card which are always worth a watch. Race 1 over 1200m could point to Royal Clinton under Eduan Muller who is based in Cape Town. Muller rode him to nearly his career best last time over this course and distance when he finished 1,45 lengths behind Lava Strike. He finished nearly three lengths ahead of the lightly raced Coffee Crunch on that occasion who has a 4,5kg beneficial swing of the weights. Coffee Crunch will surely be most effective over further so despite his best run to date being on the cards, he might come into his own with another run under his belt.

The final apprentice event is race 8 over 1000m. Worldly is such a tricky horse to follow. He does his worst out of the stalls but his best work at the finish. If Dezahn Louw can get him somewhere close to the pace and in the mood for his late flourish at the end of the race, he must be considered. He is 5kg better off with Palace Gift for five lengths. Worldly was typically his own worst enemy on that occasion over this course and distance.

Heritage Ridge has run her socks off since moving to Michelle Rix. She is due her next career win and it could materialize in race 2 over 1200m. Her penultimate start came over this course and distance and it was her best run for a while when she was beaten by less than a length by Easy Money. Hampstead Heath must be regarded as her main danger.

There is a lengthy list of chances in race 3 over 1600m. Blind Date appears to be on the up after his last win when he turned over Chance Encounter over this course and distance. It was a simple restart after summer with a sprint in his penultimate run where he was not disgraced. He followed up naturally and logically as far as procedure after a rest is concerned. Andrew Fortune takes the ride.

Baton Rouge has the widest gate of No 8 to overcome in race 4 over 1950m but his biggest threat is gatespeed which he could use to his advantage. He has been banging at the door of late and he would be deserving of his next career win. He is proven over this trip while some of his rivals need to answer any stamina doubts.

Speaking of overdue horses. My Only Weakness must count as a horse who must get the job done now. She runs in race 5 over 1500m under Mickaelle Michel. She has been very close to the winners of late. Potentially, all she needs is some confidence to finish the task. Her dangers include Vroom Vroom who needed her last run badly and she should come on and Apricity who loves this middle distance range on a soft track.

David Thiselton

Wendy Whitehead has three runners at the KwaZulu-Natal Breeders meeting on Saturday and she is also looking forward to the run of one of her stable stars, Buttercup Baby, on Hollywoodbets Durban July day.

Wendy has the best weighted runner in the eighth race on Saturday, the Captain Of Al Kwazulu-Natal Breeders 1600 on the poly. Her three-year-old filly Limitless Sky is 4kg better off than any other horse. She ran a shocker last time over 1400m on the poly in a Class 3 event over 1400m. However, the on course veterinarian could not find anything amiss. Before that she had run a 4,10 length fourth to Keukenhof in the Gr 3 uMzimkhulu Stakes over 1400m and followed that by not being disgraced when beaten 9.05 lengths by the dual Gr 1 winner Wish List in the Gr 2 WSB Fillies Guineas. She has drawn barrier ten out of ten on Saturday and regular rider Calvin Habib rides.

Wendy said, “Limitless Sky is very, very well. My only concerns are she doesn’t really like the poly track and she is drawn deep, but I am going to try and change her tactics and try and get her to race a bit more handy and maybe that will pay off because I think that is the right race, it is just a pity we are drawn so deep.”

The bookmakers have taken that last run into consideration and Hollywoodbets have her at 5/1, which could be good value if she does manage to produce her best.

First up for Wendy on Saturday is Tee Dog (Act Of War), who runs in the Blue Sky Thoroughbreds KZN Breeders 1900 on the poly. The small size of the field with just eight runners will suit this big gelding as he relishes being in front and will have the opportunity to dictate in a field where there are no other front-running sorts. He is a whopping 9,5kg under sufferance with the best weighted Hat’s Queen. However, the latter has not run since flopping in this race last year when well treated at the weights, only managing a 1,45 length fourth of six. Hat’s Queen will likely need the run after a year’s layoff. The second best weighted runner in the race is Fine Wine (Futura) who is in good form and she has a further advantage of being ridden by the very much in form Mickaelle Michel, whose 1,5kg gender claim is a bonus. However Tee Dog could get the run of the race and will offer good eachway value at 14/1.

Wendy said, “Tee Dog is very well. He just needed that last run of his and has come on from it.”

She runs Dog Soldier (Declarationofpeace) in the Double Superlative Maiden Plate over 1400m on the turf. Wendy reckoned the rider backed off him last time when hampered halfway down the straight, so that run can probably be ignored, Before that he ran a cracking 3,40 length fifth in a Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1200m on the Hollywoodbets Greyville turf, despite jumping from a wide draw. Richard Fourie is an eyecatching booking and he jumps from draw six over a trip he should get being out of a Captain Al dam who won three times from 1000m to 1600m. This race will not take a lot of winning. Furthermore, the likely favourite Owner Of Creation is drawn wide. The 7/1 shot Dog Soldier has a chance.

Wendy has entered the 102-rated What A Winter filly Buttercup Baby in the Middle Stakes race over 1200m for fillies and mares on the poly on Hollywoodbets Durban July day and she has everything in her favour. Firstly, she is at the top of the highest merit-rated band, the 99 to 102 band, which makes her the best weighted runner among the entries together with the 106-rated Precocious and the 104-rated Scarlet Macaw, who will get half-a-kilogram for each point they are above the benchmark rating of 102. Secondly she has landed a plum draw of five out of the 46 entries. She was tried over 1400m in the Tibouchina last time but it didn’t pan out at all well as she was caught wide without cover from a wide draw and duly faded after being squeezed out in the straight. Before that she ran a cracking four length third in the Gr 3 Poinsettia over 1200m at Hollywoodbets Scottsville and followed that with a fine run in the Gr 1 SA Fillies Sprint in which she was beaten just 5,40 lengths. She was raised five points to 103 for that Gr 1 effort, but came down a point after the Tibouchina. She should be a big runner in the Middle Stakes race over 1200m on Hollywoodbets July day.

David Thiselton

Peter Muscutt has engaged the Australian-based Zimbabwean Mark du Plessis to ride I Salute You in the Hollywoodbets Durban July and this will be a reunion of a partnership which has had success in both Zimbabwe and Singapore.

Peter has never had a runner under his own name in South Africa’s greatest race, but this year he looks a virtual certainty to have two runners as his pair of entries, Isivivane and I Salute You, were in 15^th and 16^th position on the last Hollywoodbets Durban July log.

Peter said about top jockey Mark du Plessis, who was Zimbabwe’s Apprentice Champion in the 1994/95 season and their overall champion in 1997/98, “He rode for me in Zimbabwe and in Singapore and in fact he rode my first winner in Singapore. He has been very successful in Asia and very successful in New Zealand. He actually had to forego the New Zealand championship the one season, because he landed a contract in Hong Kong. He would have won it, he was a long way clear. He did very well in Hong Kong (in two stints). He is a natural light weight and apart from his current residence (Australia) and all of those other places mentioned he has also ridden winners in Japan, very good rider.”

Mark has never ridden in the July before, but has ridden at Hollywoodbets Greyville.

Peter elaborated, “He did well in Hong Kong, whose two tracks are not unlike Greyville (both are tight, right-handed tracks), and he has got a lot of experience on tight-turning tracks in both New Zealand and Australia.”

Mark has ridden 36 wins in Queenland this season, which puts him in 32^nd place on the Queensland table. However, that gives a bit of a skewed picture, because in the statistics limited to the metro racetracks he is in 12^th position with 18 wins.

Although these are Peter’s first July runners under his name he has had a lot of experience in preparing July horses as the former Summerveld assistant to both Joey Ramsden and Brett Crawford.

As far as big race preparation goes, he has also learnt from one of the best trainers in the world, having spent seven years working with Australian legend Chris Waller.

The Hollywood Racing-owned four-year-old Erupt gelding Isivivane booked his berth in the July by winning the Gr 3 WSB 1900 on May 9, beating the fancied July entry Regulation by 0,60 lengths at level weights. Sean Veale rode him in the 1900 and will stay aboard for the July.

I Salute You, a four-year-old gelding by Soqrat, booked his place by finishing a 0,70 length second to Zeitz in the Gr 3 Betgames Cup Trial over 1800m on June 6.

Peter said, “Isivivane has a 2,5kg advantage over I Salute You, but I Salute You is a very good horse and I have no hesitation in suggesting that both horses are going to see out the trip very well, they are both very fit horses.”

I Salute You will be 1kg better off with Zeitz for a 0,70 length beating and Peter said, “I can’t see him beating us again.”

He added, “I Salute You was also a touch slowly away in the Cup Trial and if he hadn’t missed the break I think he would have taken a lot of beating. He was a fair way further back than I had wanted him and had he been in front of Zeitz turning in I don’t think he would have beaten us.”

He continued, “I Salute You has not jumped well in his last two starts, but we will do some work on that.”

He concluded, “They both came out of their races very well. They seem to be horses who are on the improve and they are both in really good form. Now we wait for the draws.”

Isivivane won’t have run for nearly two months by the time of the July, but Peter does not see that as a problem and reiterated that he was a very fit horse.

Both horses will work on their own at the official Hollywoodbets Durban July Gallops.

Peter added, “According to their schedule they will probably both work from the 1400m and pick it up from the 1000m.”

I Salute You is owned by Messrs E C Abraham, Mayesh Chetty, T Herdon, K Nattar, Tony Zackey, Advocate W A J Nicholson & Miss Trinisha Pillay. It will be an exciting build up to the big day for all of them.

Peter said about the draws he would prefer, “Anything from 5 to 10 would be ideal.”

Isivivane is a half-brother to the Gr 1 SA Classic winner Red Saxon (Red Ray). He is out of Casey Tibbs mare Rodeo Sioux, whose three wins included a minor feature over 2600m, so that coupled with Erupt being by Dubawi and having won two Gr 1s over 2400m augurs well for his capacity to handle the testing July trip.

I Salute You’s sire Soqrat’s three Gr 1 wins were all over a mile, but he was a flying second with topweight in the Gr 1 Summer Cup over the tough Turffontein 2000m. I Salute You,  is out of a mare by speed influence Var, but that mare is in turn out of a mare by stamina influence Silvano.

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