Please be advised ,races 7 and 8 for today’s Kenilworth race meeting
has been abandoned due to poor visibility and rain.

Joey Ramsden consolidated himself as a top echelon trainer on Saturday when adding the Vodacom Durban July to his glittering CV with the Australian-bred The Conglomerate, while Piere Strydom showed once again why he is regarded as one of South Africa’s greatest ever jockeys.

That it takes a top trainer to win the country’s premier race is evident in the winner’s roll. In fact, Ramsden became only the ninth trainer this century to have won the July.

Pundits are always experts afterwards, but a look at last year’s July ultimately provided the best clue to The Conglomerate’s chances.

He jumped from the widest draw of all in last year’s race as a three-year-old and connections were left wondering what might have been. His inexperienced jockey had panicked coming up the hill and from last place on the rail had soon found himself widest of all entering the straight, but still last. Yet, the horse still managed to move up strongly on the standside rail and looked to have a ton in hand when faced with a wall of horses and nowhere to go. In retrospect, had the jockey remained patient at the back and made his run down the centre or inside, he could have threatened the winner, or at least the placed horses.

This year, The Conglomerate jumped from the same barrier position, but significantly had one of the all-time great jockeys in world history aboard. However, what had likely led to him being largely ignored by pundits was his form since last year’s July. Furthermore, Strydom had only been given second choice of the Markus Jooste-owned horses behind retained jockey Anton Marcus, who had plumped for St. Tropez.

Joey Ramsden (Nkosi Hlophe)

The Conglomerate’s two best performances in seven outings this season had been fourth place finishes in both the Gr 2 Betting World 1900 and Gr 3 Cup Trial over 1800m. He had lacked zip in the finish in the 1900, but in his defence it was his second run after a four month layoff and gelding. His Cup Trial run was difficult to analyse as he was involved in a bumping match with Saratoga Dancer on the outside which led to him being demoted from third to fourth.

The four-year-old son of Lonhro duly ran in this year’s race off a merit rating of only 101, seven points lower than a year ago, and from being 1kg under sufferance last year, he was now 2,5kg under sufferance.

Furthermore, as the Cup Trial was a handicap and the Betting World 1900 a merit-rated bands conditions race, he was going to have improve a number of lengths from those last two runs.

Ramsden thus pulled off a magnificent training feat on Saturday. He had spoken beforehand of the tremendous work The Conglomerate had been putting in at Summerveld and of a faultless preparation. Strydom then came to the party and rode a fantastic race, managing to slot the bay into a handy position from the wide draw.

The final factor was the trip, only the horse’s second attempt beyond 2000m. He once again relished it and quickened well before staying on resolutely.

Ironically, The Conglomerate was one of the many horses in the race affected by the much talked about “manipulation” of the weights. Had Legal Eagle been scratched before the setting of the weights, The Conglomerate would have been perfectly handicapped i.e. scraping into the handicap with the minimum weight for an older horse of 53kg. Instead, he carried 55,5kg and was 2,5kg under sufferance.

The charismatic Ramsden provided entertainment in the build up to the July with his antics at the draw ceremony and was also at his best on Saturday, bowing ceremoniously to President Zuma with hands out-stretched before receiving the trophy.

David Thiselton

The handicappers have used the fourth-placed It’s My Turn as the line horse to assess Saturday’s Vodacom Durban July and this has spared the winner and placed horses from receiving big raises in their merit ratings.

The Conglomerate, who was in the race 2,5kg under sufferance, has been raised from 101 to 106 for his victory, the impressive runner up Marinaresco, who was 4,5kg under sufferance, has been raised from 101 to 109, and fifth-placed Saratoga Dancer, who was 5,5kg under sufferance, has been raised from 95 to 101.

It’s My Turn, who was 2,5kg under sufferance, remains on 105.

Had third-placed Mac De Lago been used as the line horse it would have been a different story and they would have all received considerably bigger raises.

However, the handicappers look to have done the right thing in the overall context of the race, considering the only five horses which were actually in the handicap finished third (Mac de Lago), ninth (Master Sabina), eleventh (French Navy), thirteenth (Abashiri) and last (Solid Speed) respectively.

Overall these five have clearly run below their ratings, so it would have been unfair to assess the winner and placed horses against one of them.

David Thiselton

Gold Circle’s commercial executive Patrick Loker was ebullient after the Vodacom Durban July totalisator figures showed an upturn from last year in every department despite the budgeted for amounts having predicted a downturn.

He said, “We are exceptionally pleased to have achieved this in the current economic climate and I would like to thank everybody who contributed.”

Gold Circle’s totalisators turned over R28,116,818 on the July alone compared to R27,728,586 last year, an up turn of 1,4%, and this was 9,62% higher than their budgeted for figure of only R25,648,994.

SAFTOTE turnovers showed a 5,16% increase on the July, going up from R56,095,080 to R58,987,753.

Gold Circle’s totalisators turned over R58,867,624 on the Greyville meeting on Saturday, which was 0,2% higher than last year and 8,32% higher than their budgeted for figure.

SAFTOTE turned over R127,960,447 on the Greyville meeting, which was 7,71% higher than last year.

Gold Circle’s turnovers for all venues on the day was R62,803,905, which was 1,01% higher than last year and 8,94% higher than their budgeted for figure.

SAFTOTE’s turnover for all venues was R144,992,274, which was 7,34% higher than last year.

David Thiselton

Met winner Smart Call is to take on some of the best fillies in Europe before leaving for America for the Breeders’ Cup meeting.

Alec Laird said: “She arrived in Newmarket last Wednesday  and doesn’t have to do any further quarantine in Britain as the European authorities accepted that what she did in Mauritius was enough. The place she stayed at was half an hour from any other horse.

Smart Call (Liesl King)

“She is based at Abington Place (Mary’s Slack’s establishment) and you couldn’t find a better place to train from. We are aiming to run her in the Group 1 Sun Chariot Stakes over a mile at Newmarket on October 1. She will probably need that run –  all the quarantine has put us under a bit of pressure.”

The $2 million Filly & Mare Turf over ten furlongs at Santa Anita in California on November 5 is the Breeders’ Cup race for which Smart Call has received the invitation and Laird confirmed that is the one she is being aimed at.

The Mauritzfontein four-year-old, who also won the Maine Chance Paddock Stakes, had a gruelling journey from Mauritius last week, flying via Nairobi to Liege in Belgium. She then travelled to Amsterdam and from there by road – and ferry across the English Channel – to Newmarket.

The Sun Chariot invariably attracts a high class field and has been won by fillies from France and Ireland as well as Britain in recent years.

Michael Clower