Gavin Lerena, the 2015 Longines International Jockeys’ Championship winner, will spend two months based at Sha Tin from late next month as part of a mid-season licensing shake-up announced on Wednesday.

As well as the recruitment of Lerena, it was revealed that Gregory Benoist will cut short his current stint and that Chad Schofield, who was licensed until February 1, will ride through until the end of this season.

Lerena (pictured), whose minimum riding weight is 122-pounds, impressed many with his skills in last month’s IJC, in which he scored wins on Mr Right and Superoi in the final two legs of the series, and he will join a long list of champion South African riders to have competed in Hong Kong throughout the years.

A winner of more than 1,300 races in his homeland, Lerena clinched the 2014-15 South African Jockeys’ Championship with 220 wins at a strike rate of 19 per cent and has won nine Group One races, including the South African Derby twice.

Lerena will find himself pitched against some hot opposition when he arrives for a stint that begins at the Citibank Hong Kong Gold Cup meeting on February 28 and stretches through to the Champions Mile fixture on May 1 – a period that also includes a host of big races, including the Stewards’ Cup and BMW Hong Kong Derby.

Also beginning this Saturday will be current British champion Silvestre de Sousa, whose licence was rubber stamped yesterday, with the Brazilian to ride through to the Stewards’ Cup meeting on January 31.

A change in contractual commitments prompted Benoist to cut short his relatively successful stay, with Al Shaqab racing upgrading his deal and requesting that the Belgian-born rider return to France to assist in the preparation of young horses for the new European season.

Schofield missed Wednesday night’s Happy Valley meeting with illness but was pleased to be continuing on full time after riding 11 winners so far and establishing himself in the top ten of the Jockeys’ Championship.

“It was always the goal to stay full time so it’s great to have it made official,” said Schofield, who expects to be back riding again on Saturday after suffering with a stomach ailment over the last few days. “I couldn’t keep anything down, I don’t know what it is, but I thought it was better to rest and be right for the weekend and make sure I was 100 per cent right to ride there.”
– South China Morning Post

Futura and Legislate dominate the market for the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate at Kenilworth on Saturday and trainer Justin Snaith says: “They are both spot on and it will take a very good horse to beat them.”

Snaith, who won the race with Gimmethegreenlight four years ago, gave last year’s winner Futura his final piece of serious work in a racecourse gallop on December 27 while Legislate went to Kenilworth two days later for his.

“Legislate galloped 1400m on his own with Bernard Fayd’Herbe riding and he was very good,” reports the former champion trainer. “His best run last year was in the Green Point after four-and-a-half months off when he broke the course record and we are replicating what we did then with him.”

Towards the end of last week Snaith got his vet to check out both horses, explaining: “I always do that and I also give them a blood test to make sure there is no haemo-concentrating because that is something that can sneak up on you.”

Futura and Legislate have met on five previous occasions and every time one of them has won. The score is 3-2 in Legislate’s favour at the moment.

– TABnews

Picture: Legislate left Futura right (John Lewis)

Legal Eagle, the country’s best horse on merit ratings, will be having his first race on a left-hand track when he lines up in the R1-million L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate over 1600m at Kenilworth on Saturday.

Trainer Sean Tarry doesn’t believe it will be an issue and the star runner’s many fans will be hoping that he does adapt.

Horses “lead” with the inside fore (right leg) on a right-handed track like Turffontein, but with the left or off fore on a left-handed track like Kenilworth. They can get so used to leading with the one leg on the turn that there can be issues when asked to lead with the other.

Legal Eagle has been in Cape Town for a couple of weeks and Tarry has shown him the Kenilworth track in a quick workout. “It was a good-enough gallop,” he commented. “But only a race will tell whether he enjoys racing left-handed, which is one of the reasons why we are running him here.”

Legal Eagle’s main mission this summer is the J&B Met on Saturday 30 January. He was originally due to run in the London News Stakes at Turffontein on Saturday as his final preparatory run before being flown to Cape Town in the week of the Met. But an African horse sickness scare forced Tarry and Dereck Brugman to take him there sooner than anticipated to eliminate the risk and he has been based with Tarry’s assistant Monique Mansour at Eric Sands’ establishment for a couple of weeks now.

“He’s well,” said Tarry. “He has come on since that run a month ago, when he only just failed against Killua Castle in an 1800m race on the inside track at Turffontein. He’s on track for the Met from a fitness point of view.”

Tarry does not believe Legal Eagle can beat Futura because the 1600m of the country’s premier “mile” is 400m too short for the Greys Inn gelding. “If he gets into the hunt I’ll be happy,” he said. “He’ll probably race from mid-field and I’m sure he’ll finish off well.”

Legal Eagle will be ridden by owner Markus Jooste’s retained jockey Anton Marcus, who was originally down to ride Act Of War. “The fact that Anton chose to ride him in his prep for the Met must tell us something about what he thinks of the horse,” said Tarry. “After all, Act Of War is the better 1600m runner.”

Gold Onyx, he said, is thriving in Cape Town and made a good comeback from a four-month rest when second to Paterfamilias over 1800m last month.

“That was a fantastic prep run – he was caught wide and finished very well. We were a bit worried about his fitness that day and he’s come on a lot since then. He can spring another surprise over a distance short of his best and I’d be happy with a place.

“He started off in the same race last year before running third in the Queen’s Plate and then second in the Met and he travelled better this year. Yes, he’s a year older, but he seems to be in even better physical shape this year.”

Tarry has Liege in the R250,000 Politician Stakes and says punters can ignore his two runs so far in Cape Town. He finished downfield in both.

“He had an ear infection after the first and we found mucus in his trachea after the second. We wouldn’t have taken him down if we thought he had limitations. He’ll do much better, although I do believe Rabada is the horse to beat. He has a lot of weight but is clearly the best horse in the race and deserves the weight.”

French Navy, the Equus Champion Three-Year-Old last season, will be running at Turffontein in the London News Stakes and Tarry said: “I’d like to think he’s a banker in the carryover Pick 6. He’s got a lot in his favour, but at the end of the day everything’s got to fall into place.”
– TABnews

Betting World’s latest odds: 2-1 Futura; 28-10 Legislate; 11-2 Captain America; 15-2 Act Of War; 8-1 Legal Eagle; 10-1 Noah From Goa; 16-1 Master Sabina; 20-1 Heartland; 25-1 Power King, Bouclette Top, Gold Onyx; 40-1 King Of Pain; 50-1 Night Trip; 66-1 Ashton Park.

Rabada, expected to start favourite for the Cartier Politician Stakes at Kenilworth on Saturday, had his travel delayed by administrative veterinary problems and only arrived in Cape Town yesterday.

Racing manager Derek Brugman said yesterday: “I would caution the racing public about this because we don’t know what to expect. The horse is fit and well, and is over his pharyngitis, but he would have had an extra day to recover if he travelled when he should have done – and an extra day’s recovery can mean a hell of a lot.”

Anton Marcus, who rides the Mike Azzie-trained colt, was originally declared to partner Act Of War in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate but has switched to Legal Eagle. Andrew Fortune takes his place.

Meanwhile, Same Jurisdiction has been installed 5-2 favourite with World Sports Betting for the Maine Chance Farms Paddock Stakes at Kenilworth on Saturday.

Smart Call, beaten a length by the Duncan Howells-trained filly in the Garden Province, is second favourite at 28-10 with the SA Oaks winner Pine Princess next on 4-1. Last year’s winner Inara is a 9-1 chance.

By Michael Clower

Our Destiny, 100-1 when chasing home Silver Mountain in the Fillies Guineas, may well start favourite for the conditions plate at Kenilworth today. She opened at 15-10 with World Sports Betting on Monday and, while she has since eased to 22-10, she still makes a lot of appeal.

She has a kilo to find with Alexis on adjusted ratings but Glen Kotzen is bullish about her. “She has done fantastic and got so much stronger since the Guineas,” he says. “She runs here and then the Klawervlei Majorca (Jan 23). There are really no other races for her because of her high merit rating.”

Kotzen also runs last season’s Fillies Guineas third Double Whammy but the 4-1 shot chipped a fetlock in her next race. “She needed her last two runs and I may just decide to put a pair of blinkers on,” says the Woodhill boss.

Alexis (John Lewis)

Alexis met with interference in a hot race last time and so is better than the form figures would suggest. She has been nibbled at (from 3-1 to 28-10 with WSB and from 7-2 to 5-2 with Betting World) and seems a bigger danger than Eventual Angel who looks too short at 15-4 considering how much she has to find on the ratings.

Justin Snaith and Bernard Fayd’Herbe should warm up for Saturday by taking the last with Nima but the first two races are tricky. Punters should note that the three unraced horses in the first are all considered useful.

Ferrero Rocha is an Australian bred and Candice Robinson says: “She may need it experience-wise and she will also want more ground but she is quite a nice filly.”

Andre Nel, looking for an excuse to celebrate his 37^th birthday a day early, introduces Liberal Sally and says: “She is not a star but it doesn’t look a strong race so she might have a chance.”

The Trippi filly Trippvilia represents Hassen Adams and Darryl Hodgson who says: “She is nice and she will run very well if she is not hindered by greenness.”

Ferrero Rocha and Liberal Sally opened joint favourites at 7-2 with WSB on Monday but the money has come for the Nel filly who was only 22-10 yesterday afternoon and was backed from 5-1 to 2-1 with BW. Brett Crawford’s New Found Glory (whose first run was far better than the bare result would suggest) is a 9-2 chance but Trippvilia was friendless and drifted out from 10-1 to 25-1.

Flying Ryan, who opened 4-1 joint favourite for the All To Come Maiden (race two), has met with an injury and has been scratched. The money has come in a big way for the original 10-1 tip This Is Sparta who is now as short as 9-2. He has similar credentials to New Found Glory and Crawford says: “He ran a good race first time, coming from quite a long way back, and he has shown good improvement at home since then.”

He is still the selection but the value has gone. Bora Bora is also worth considering.  Fayd’Herbe’s mount could be slightly better than his last run would indicate – he didn’t stride out freely – and he now wears blinkers.

By Michael Clower

Picture: Alexis (John Lewis)