Sensational season finale at HWB Greyville
Jack Milner
This 2025/26 season has been full of interest, and we have seen some remarkable feats. Craig Zackey had his first Champion Jockey’s title wrapped up months ago as did Justin Snaith for the Champion Trainer’s equivalent.
However, it all comes to end at Hollywoodbets Greyville on Sunday with the staging of World Pool Gold Cup Day. All 10 races are feature races with three of them Grade 1s, four Grade 2s, one Grade 3 and two Listed races
All 10 races are Hong Kong World Pool events and that enables punters to bet into huge international commingled pools for Win, Place, Exacta, Quinella and Swinger bets. However, please note that the rules for place payouts differ for this meeting.
If there are less than four declared runners there will be no Place betting. If there are four to six declared runners Place bets will be paid on the first two finishers while with seven runners or more Places will be paid out on first, second and third.
There will also be three Jackpots offered to bettors. Jackpot One will be on Races 1 to 4, Jackpot Two on Races 5 to 8 and Jackpot Three on Races 7 to 10. There will be a R500,000 carryover to Jackpot Three with a likely pool of R2 million.
There is a R1-million carryover kicking off the Pick 6 pool which starts in Race 4 with a likely pool of R8 million.
While the only Grade 3 race on the card, the World Pool Gold Cup over 3200m remains the premier stayers’ race in the country and what makes this race particularly interesting is that the 2023, 2024 and 2025 winners, Future Pearl, Master Redoute and King Pelles respectively, will line up again this year.
There is little doubt that King Pelles is the runner to beat. He comes off an outstanding run in the Hollywoodbets Durban July when he finished a 1.55-length third behind Note To Self, giving the three-year-old 4kg.
Gareth van Zyl’s charge is even better over this distance and with Lyle Hewitson returning from Hong Kong to ride him, King Pelles will be hard to stop again. The only concern is whether he has got over his tough race in the Durban July.
If not, then Master Redoute and Grade 3 Gold Vase winner Ahead Of The Facts could fight it out.
Both the Grade 1 HKJC Champions Cup over 1800m and the Grade 1 Mercury Sprint over 1200m have the best in the land lining up in the respective fields.
Snaith pulled two of his best runners, See It Again and Eight On Eighteen, out of the Durban July and he has focused them on this race. Both are better suited to this distance and rather than 2200m and the two vie for favouritism on the bookmakers’ boards.
Eight On Eighteen has not won since capturing the Daily News 2000 in 2025 but did come down with a bad case of biliary late last year. It is a disease that often takes a severe grip on the performance of racehorse and as long as Eight On Eighteen has fully recovered and is back to his three-year-old form, he has to be a runner.
It is worth noting that jockey Richard Fourie has stuck with him which is significant and he is reported to have had an excellent gallop last week.
See It Again finished third in last year’s race but has been a much-improved performer since joining the Snaith yard late last year. He has gone on to win the Grade 1 World Sports Betting Cape Town Met and then travelled to Joburg to capture the HKJC World Pool Premier’s Champions Challenge over 2000m at Turffontein in impressive fashion. Keagan de Melo gets the ride on him for the first time.
However, last year the finish of this race was fought out by The Real Prince, who came off his victory in the Durban July, and Gladatorian, who got up on the line to take the honours. They are back to do it all over again and they could fight out the finish once again.
This time, though, Dean Kannemeyer has prepared his runner specifically for this race and Zackey could celebrate the start of his championship title in style.
Nevertheless, he will need to keep looking over his shoulder because Sean Veale is likely to be closing in him late aboard Stuart Ferrie-trained Gladatorian.
Tony Peter-trained Buffalo Storm Cody is back to defend his title in the Mercury Sprint and this field has attracted the likes of Vaughan Marshall’s Questioning, last year’s runner-up Tenango, Taxi To The Moon and Jet Force.
Buffalo Storm Cody had his warm-up run in the Grade 2 Post Merchants over this track and trip on Durban July Day, and finished a 0.50-length second behind Jet Force who he now meets on 2kg better terms.
“He needed his last run,” said Peter. “We decided to take him to Durban rather than race him in the hard going at Turffontein. He was underdone and he still ran a cracker.
“He actually should have won but he is terrified of the lights and starts running around.
“But that run has brought him on and he looks a picture. I’m confident he will run a big race.”
Peter admitted that they had offered the ride to Fourie but he opted to go with Questioning. “But I’m happy we’ve got Gavin (Lerena) and he knows the horse well.”
Questioning has been one of the finds of the year, having only lost once this year and that was a short-head defeat by The Real Prince in the Grade 1 L’Ormarins King’s Plate at HWB Kenilworth. However, he has had hard season and will need to overcome No 11 draw.
Candice Bass has Tenango who ran second last year, beaten 1.60 lengths. He is 0.5kg better off but that might not be enough to turnover the form with Buffalo Storm Cody.
Jack Milner’s selecrions
Race 1: 4 Better Man, 5 Green Gateway, 8 Isivivane, 10 Landoftherisingsun
Race 2: 6 Palace Of Arvernia, 3 Ferrari Flair, 8 Sweet Green, 11 Ocean Mistress
Race 3: 5 St Harry, 6 Benny And Paul, 11 Gimme Some Luck, 8 US Ranger
Race 4: 3 Alice B Toklas, 6 Marchland, 4 Royal Tiara, 1 Impressive
Race 5: 5 Moana, 4 Secretary Bird, 7 Prayersandpromises, 14 Vibe Check
Race 6: 4 Buffalo Storm Cody, 11 Questioning, 2 Tenango, 8 Taxi To The Moon
Race 7: 6 King Pelles, 11 Master Redoute, 7 Ahead Of The Facts, 9 Native Ruler
Race 8: 1 The Real Prince, 2 Gladatorian, 4 Eight On Eighteen, 3 See It Again
Race 9: 5 Anotherdanceforme, 12 Mocha Blend, 1 Minogue, 4 Kubu
Race 10: 1 African Pride, 3 Chapbook, 8 Dame Of Trix, 11 Circumbendibus
BEST BET
Race 2: 6 Palace Of Arvernia
VALUE BET
Race 5: 5 Moana
BEST SWINGER
Race 4 3×6
BIPOT
R240
Leg 1: 6
Leg 2: 5, 6, 8, 9, 11
Leg 3: 3, 6
Leg 4: 4, 5, 7, 14
Leg 5: 4, 11
Leg 6: 6, 7, 11
PLACE ACCUMULATOR
R48
Leg 1: 5, 6, 8, 11
Leg 2: 3
Leg 3: 4, 5, 7, 14
Leg 4: 4
Leg 5: 6
Leg 6: 1, 2, 4
Leg 7: 5
PICK 6
R450
Leg 1: 3, 6
Leg 2: 4, 5, 7, 13, 14
Leg 3: 4, 11
Leg 4: 6, 7, 11
Leg 5: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6
Leg 6: 5
JACKPOT 1
R70
Leg 1: 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 13
Leg 2: 6
Leg 3: 5, 6, 8, 9, 11
Leg 4: 3, 6
JACKPOT 2
R150
Leg 1: 4, 5, 7, 13, 14
Leg 2: 4, 11
Leg 3: 6, 7, 11
Leg 4: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6
JACKPOT 3
R105
Leg 1: 6, 7, 11
Leg 2: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6
Leg 3: 5
Leg 4: 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 11, 14