‘Gqeberha July’ Switch To Poly – A Good Call?

Racing operators are damned if they do and damned if they don’t, and remain in an invidious position when making relatively long-term calls on racemeeting changes.

4Racing’s decision to move Friday’s Fairview racemeeting, hosting the ‘Gqeberha July’ from the turf to the polytrack, has been met with some puzzlement and questions. Does it serve racing best?

Joey Ramsden’s Disco Al (Robbie Fradd) gets the better of Storm Dancer to win the 2013 Algoa Cup, which was run on the poly (Pic – Coastal Photos)

Mother Nature has proven a fearsome foe for racing across the country in 2024.

And the decision was taken following 150mm of rain overnight into Tuesday, continued rain throughout the day, and more rain forecast for Wednesday, off a high penetrometer reading of 50-60, to switch surfaces.

The distance of the second race, the non black-type Betway Wedgewood Handicap, has been reduced from 2400m to 2200m.

In the 2023 renewal of the then Jonsson Workwear-sponsored Listed Algoa Cup, Justin Snaith maintained the visitor stranglehold and racked up his fifth victory in ten renewals of the 2000m feature, when Future Swing beat fellow Cape raider Han Solo. The race was run on a Sunday last year.

Jono Snaith – feels more thought should have gone into the decision to run the feature on the polytrack (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)

Snaith sadly won’t get an opportunity to maintain his fine record as he has already scratched his duo of Rockpool and recent Listed Settlers Trophy winner Call To Unite from Friday’s racemeeting. The Snaith pair were pulled out at 13h53 today, for reason of ‘change of surface’.

A disappointed Snaith Racing spokesman Jonathan Snaith told the Sporting Post on Tuesday that he was of the opinion that it would have been a far more prudent course of action to postpone Gqeberha’s premier race to another day to preserve the quality and integrity of the event, while keeping it on the turf.

“This is the most important race of the year in the province and upholding the (Listed) status of the race should be considered – it has already slipped from graded status to Listed and it will likely be under even further scrutiny after this decision,” suggested Snaith.

According to collateral information, the Algoa Cup was previously run in 2013 (Disco Al) and 2020 (Silver de Lange) on the polytrack.

Our thanks to Andrew Bon for the footage:

While punters are emotional creatures by nature, many suggest that the polytrack often yields inconsistent results, making it feel like a lottery at times.

“I feel for the punters – you have a greater chance at a roulette table. The short run-in often does not promote fair competition, leading to unpredictable outcomes for many horses, owners, and bettors. Additionally, this surface carries a higher risk of injuries, which isn’t an ideal situation for any horse, and more so higher rated horses, in races such as the Algoa Cup,” concluded Snaith.

Longstanding racing fan Michael Jacobs agreed, and conceded up front that he was not a ‘fan of polytrack racing’.

“This decision  is not a good result to my mind for a feature raceday in a minor centre. in fact, I don’t believe it’s a great decision for all stakeholders. 4Racing, like any racing operator, need to consider punters and sponsors too. I cannot speak for trainers and owners. And the jockeys earn a living on both surfaces,” mused Jacobs, who has been punting for over forty years.

TAB have put up a R500 000 Pick 6 carryover into the racemeeting. This now seems like a genuine longshot to reach the projected R3 million total, with scratchings aplenty likely, and resultant reduced field sizes.

The Sporting Post endeavoured to contact 4Racing for a comment. There was no response at time of publication. Any information furnished by them will be published.