Do It Again chasing a historic July hat-trick

Forget about the romantic notion that it's good enough to simply be part of the occasion. That might be the heartbeat of the founder of the modern Olympics Baron Pierre d'Coubertin's assertion that "it's not the winning that counts but the taking part". When it comes to the Vodacom Durban July, winning is everything.

For the owners, trainer, jockey, groom, fans and punters, being able to say that you were associated with the winner of what is marketed as "Africa's Greatest Horse Race" is something to dine out on.

This year is different for obvious reasons that include the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, but the message is the same. The famous race, first contested in 1897, will go ahead again at Durban's Greyville racecourse next Saturday. Around 3.10pm the gates will swing open, letting 18 runners and their jockeys off on a 2,200m trip with everything on the line.

The show goes on

After a season that stood still for 81 days during the Covid-19 lockdown, the show goes on, albeit on a slightly later date than is traditional. The lockdown brought racing, like so many other industries, to its knees. Livelihoods were lost and when the lockdown was lifted on racing on June 1, what remained was a sport fighting for survival.

Known as "the sport of kings", racing has been left to feed off scraps thrown from the table of sporting royalty. In terms of relevance, it has slipped down the food chain, swallowed up by the exposure and sponsorships afforded to the likes of rugby, soccer and cricket. But the July lives on and although this year's stake is a watered-down R1.5m, Vodacom remains the backer.

Next Saturday, however, the action will take place at a virtually deserted Greyville due to lockdown restrictions. Winning remains the watchword though, and Do It Again attempts to become the first horse to win the race three times in a row. He is trained by the always competitive Justin Snaith, who has saddled the winner of three of the last six instalments. In the four years before that, the wins were shared two each by Sean Tarry and Mike de Kock.

Next Saturday Snaith saddles five runners, including joint favourite Belgarion, who is stable jockey Richard Fourie's first choice. Four of Snaith's runners drew unfavourably from stall gates 14-18, including his two big guns, Belgarion and Do It Again.

The latter should be a household name, given he's won back-to-back Julys, though with the worst draw and form that suggests his best days are behind him, he has it all to do. Should Do It Again indeed do it yet again it would be a feat that would enter the annals of SA sporting history.

The most popular choices will be Rainbow Bridge and Belgarion and these two could well make it a punter's delight. I'd throw in Bunker Hunt and Tierra Del Fuego as outsiders that should give you a run for your money.