South Africa’s first ever black Champion Jockey S’Manga Khumalo is running away with this year’s championship, which was very tightly contested for the first half of the season, and looks likely to regain the title he first won in the 2013/2014 season.

Meanwhile apprentice Lyle Hewitson is likely making record breaking progress towards losing his 4kg claim and clinched his first career treble in the professional ranks at Turffontein
Khumalo had ridden 173 winners this season at the time of going to press at a strike rate of 18,31% and was 22 clear of Anthony Delpech, who has a phenomenal strike rate of 23,05%.

However, Anton “Superman”Marcus has the highest strike rate in the country, his 115 winners coming at a rate of 25,33%.

 

Khumalo is being mentored by one of South Africa’s greatest and most professional ever jockeys, Felix Coetzee, and this is proving to be a telling weapon in his armoury. In the same way the greatest of golfers need advice on their swings, the best jockeys can always do with input from a knowledgeable observer, although Coetzee is likely to be taking a backseat at the moment such is the confidence with which Khumalo is riding.

Meanwhile, Hewitson has age and workriding experience on his side, but it is still interesting to compare his progress at this stage of his career to the most prolific apprentice in South African history, Gavin Lerena, who went on to be crowned South African Champion Jockey last season.

After 74 rides Hewitson has had eleven winners at a strike rate of 14,86%, while Lerena had only six winners under the belt at that stage at a strike rate of 8,11%, while this season’s leading apprentice Callan Murray had five winners after 74 rides at a strike rate of 6,7%.

Hewitson also has plenty of trainer support on his side having arrived at the Academy with a big reputation after riding 22 winners as a workrider.

Nevertheless the former Kearsney College pupil has impressed with his maturity and it would have paid to follow him on Saturday.

His three winners occurred in successive races.

The Joey Soma-trained Savage Wind bounced back to his best to just get up and win a 2600m handicap at odds of 15/2, the Soma-trained High Drama then won at odds of 7/2 and the Sean Tarry-trained Elusive Spirit then won at odds of 15/2 after a perfectly judged front-running ride from Hewitson.

Hewitson just has nine more to go to reach the 20 winner mark at which stage his claim will change to 2,5kg.

Meanwhile, Murray is fulfilling all the predictions his Riding Masters once made and is one of the most sort after jockeys in the country, despite having lost his 1,5kg claim some time ago.

He has ridden 45 winners this season at a strike rate of 7,2% and in the race for National Champion Apprentice is 14 clear of joint-second placed Matthew Thackeray and Eric Saziso Ngwane.

Last year’s champion apprentice Craig Zackey has also continued to excel since losing his claim.

He has ridden 58 winners this season at a strike rate of 7,98%, a fine feat considering the first year out of the apprentice ranks is the toughest of years for riders due to the sudden lack of a support base.

Former KZN apprentice champion jockey Donovan Dillon is also doing well down in Cape Town and is stable jockey to one of the most powerful yards in the country, Joey Ramsden. He has ridden 41 winners this season at a strike rate of 9,53%.

By David Thiselton