OFF THE RECORD #53

Jozi's Crown Jewel
The Summer Cup Through the Ages

If time machines existed, we’d be able to roll back the years to 1886 for a fascinating experience of Johannesburg as a sprawling, untamed mining camp with layers of dust on every tent, and dreams of gold painting the air thick with ambition. When the 135^th Summer Cup is staged at Turffontein next Saturday, let’s take some time to remember the incredible historic foundations of the horse race to which headline sponsor, Betway, has assigned R6-million, the richest racing purse ever for an established Grade 1 race on the African continent.

Imagine being in ‘Jozi’ at the time of the Gold Rush, witnessing rugged prospectors from every corner of the world converged on this chaotic frontier, armed with pickaxes, pans and big dreams. Nights were loud with chatter in dimly lit pubs and heated arguments erupting into brawls. By day, the lure of easy riches bred an insatiable hunger for competition - whether in the deep-level shafts of the gold reefs or on the open ground above.

Amidst this raw and restless energy, a new pastime began to emerge. Horses, brought in to aid mining efforts or simply to accompany their owners, became central to a new kind of contest: races on a makeshift track established near the big miner’s camp. They named it Turffontein - ‘clay fountain’, translated from Afrikaans. Here, fortunes could be wagered and pride could be earned. In this bustling arena, the only laws were luck and brute strength - born from the thrill of the chase.

Above: Turffontein Racecourse

The first Summer Cup was named the ‘Johannesburg Turf Club Handicap’, worth the grand sum of £250 and held over a distance of 3200m on 15 June 1887. It was won by a horse called ‘Second’ (by Black Night), owned by Mr. A. Alison and ridden by jockey B. Gunnett. The trainer is not known.

The name of race was changed to the ‘Johannesburg Summer Handicap’ in December 1890 and held that until 1898, when the second Anglo-Boer war broke out and racing at the track was interrupted for two years. Interestingly, during this period, the Turffontein grandstand and the area around the track were used to house prisoners in a concentration camp set up by the British Army. With its rich and diverse history, Turffontein Racecourse was awarded a prestigious Blue Plaque, by the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation, in 2016.

The race re-emerged in December 1901, during the last few months of the war. It was renamed the ‘Johannesburg December Handicap’ for one renewal, before the ‘Johannesburg Summer Handicap’ was established in 1902. It was run over 1800m between 1906 and 1909, and became a 2000m contest in 1910. It was not renamed again until 1972, when the hotel chain, Holiday Inn, took up the sponsorship. The ‘Holiday Inns’ became the ‘Sun International’ between 1984 and 1987; the Administrator’s Champion Stakes between 1988 and 1991; the ’Administrator’s Cup between 1992 and 1996 and the ‘Premier’s Cup for 1997 and 1998. In 1999, the race was staged as the ‘Summer Handicap’ which was changed to the ‘Summer Cup’ in 2000. Between 2000 and 2021 a number of major sponsors took care of the stake, including Gomma-Gomma, Steinhoff and Sansui, until the online betting giant, Betway, took the mantle in 2022.

Above: Java, the original Summer Cup hero

Among the many turf greats associated with the Summer Cup are two runners who won the race three times in succession. Java (by Brookhill -GB), trained by Jackie Butler, reigned victorious in 1956 – 1958 and George Azzie’s Elevation (by High Veldt – GB), was the outstanding star of 1972-1974. Hengist (Naval Prince,1958/1961), Roland’s Song (Roland Gardens, 2001/2001) and Master Sabina (Jet Master, 2015/16) won two Summer Cups each.

There were jockey changes for both horses, for both hat-tricks. Harold ‘Tiger’ Wright won on Java in 1956 and 1958, but in 1957 he elected to ride the ‘boom horse’ Tiger Fish for trainer Tim Furness and the Oppenheimer family. Tiger Fish started favourite at 15-10, but finished second to the barnstorming Java (25-1), ridden by Wright’s replacement jock, Johnny Westwater.

Above: Elevation with Martin Schoeman

Martin Schoeman rode Elevation to victory in 1972 and 1973, but lost the ride to Garth Puller in 1974. Michael Azzie, who was a teenager at the time but was already active in George Azzie’s stable yard, recalled: “Martin was my grandfather’s blue-eyed boy. He was the stable apprentice, lived in their house and later became the stable jockey. He was a great rider, one of the best, but was about as unreliable as he was talented.

“Martin could go walkabout for weeks. He’d often plan fishing trips to remote Magoebaskloof without word or warning to anyone. About 10 days before the 1974 Holiday Inns, Martin fell off one of my grandfather’s horses and was booked off for a few days. It was the time of declarations and my grandfather, fearing that Martin would do his disappearing act, felt he had to play it safe by booking another top rider. He tracked down an in-form young jockey named Garth Puller in Cape Town and secured his services.

“Garth, professional that he was, flew up to ride Elevation in work the very next Monday and stayed on. He came to his stable every day and walked him, got to know the horse well. He rode a fine race. Marty Schoeman had made a lot of use of Elevation in his first two Holiday Inns wins. He took him to the front early and kept going. Garth gave the horse more of a chance. They were off the pace and produced a sustained finish to win it.”

Mike de Kock holds the record for the most Summer Cup winners. He’s saddled nine, starting with Evening Mist (Peacetime) in 1989, and followed by Record Edge (Sunny North, 1997), Golden Hoard (All Fired Up, 1998), Delta Form (Marscay, 2000), Ingleside (Dolpour, 2001), Wolf Whistle (Badger Land, 2003), Ilha Da Vitoria (Candy Stripes), Rudra (Parade Leader, 2008) and Flirtation (Silvano, 2010).

George Azzie, one of the master trainers of the mid-20^th century, won six Summer Cups. Aside from his hat-trick with Elevation, he was also in charge of White Foam (White Horses, 1960), Numeral (Eastern Emperor, 1962) and Caradoc (Noble Chieftain, 1966). Caradoc, a galloper most popular with racegoers in Johannesburg at the time, is buried on the infield at Turffontein alongside the 1978 Cup winner Furious (Savonarola), and two other crowd favourites, Beau Art and Aquanaut.

Also on 6 wins is Geoff Woodruff won the 1999 renewal of the Cup with El Picha, the 2002 running renewal with Eventuail (Candy Stripes) and then chalked up four-in-row with Yorker, (Jet Master, 2013) Louis The King (Black Minnaloushe, 2014) and Master Sabina (2015/16).

Sean Tarry has trained five to win the big contest. He saddled Aslan (Silvano, 2009), followed by three-in-a-row Liege (Dynasty, 2017), Tilbury Fort and Zilzaal (Silvano, 2019) and in 2022 an upset win with Flying Carpet (Judpot).

Above: The titanic battle between Wolf Whistle and Yard-Arm

Wolf Whistle’s titanic battle with Yard-Arm in 2003 was described as South Africa’s ‘race of the decade’ (*2000-2010) and some will argue it was the best Summer Cup finish of modern times. Neither Piere Strydom on Geoff Woodruff’s Yard-Arm or Kevin Shea on De Kock’s Wolf Whistle were prepared to give an inch that day, 29 November 2003. The two vastly experienced jockeys steered their mounts purposefully towards each other for a thrilling 300m-match that raised the final moments of this memorable contest to high fever.

The Citizen’s Racing Express reported: “Nostrils flaring, as if electrically charged by the support of a large and excited crowd, Yard Arm and Wolf Whistle sensed, too, that this would be the biggest moment of their lives. With their determined pair of riders bringing lock, stock and barrel to the riveting denouement of this championship, they drew on every ounce of energy in their formidable frames.

“Shea threw all 53kg of him and the 5kg of dead weight in his saddle bag at the powerhouse with the broad, copper-tinged hindquarters. In the process, he didn’t forget to let an elbow fly at Strydom, and then another as the blonde rider struck readily back with his elbow and forearm.

“In the course of this vigorous tussle, Yard-Arm nudged his head marginally in front, but as the post arrived the son of Badger Land gave one last, almighty lurch. When the judge studied the photo, Wolf Whistle’s nose had touched the line first.

“The brave brawlers had no sooner crossed the line than the siren sounded to signal a race review by the stipendiary stewards. This was followed a couple of minutes later by an announcement that Strydom had laid an objection against the winner on the grounds of bumping and intimidation.

“The Stipendiary Stewards, after viewing the patrol films and examining the evidence for 20 minutes, decided that, despite the interference, Yard-Arm would not have finished in front of Wolf Whistle. The objection was overruled.”

Only eight fillies have won the Summer Cup in the last 50 years. Mike de Kock trained three of them, Evening Mist, Ilha Da Vitoria and Flirtation, and there are a number of experts who expect that Silver Sanctuary will break the trainer’s 13-year drought this year. Enchanted Garden (Roland Gardens, 1986), Empress Club (Farnesio, 1992), Dancewitthedevil (Modus Vivendi, 2011) and Summer Pudding (Silvano, 2020), are others who carried the banner for the female sex.

The biggest outsider to win the Summer Cup was 50-1 chance, Cordon Rouge, who won in 1904 under jockey J. Hare. Electrified (33-1 Jannie van Rooyen, 1947), Red Sands (33-1, Jimmy Anderson, 1967) and Cardinal Fury (33-1, Marthinus Mienie, 1993) were other longshots to land the trophy.

Above: Pedometer wins the Summer Cup under Jeff Lloyd

Our research shows only three grey winners in Casbah (Luminary, 1955), Fire Arch (Kenmare, 1995) and Ilha Da Vitoria in 2005. The biggest winning was posted by Pedometer (Averof), who came home 14 lengths clear in 1987. Trainer Jean Heming, commenting on reports in the media that this was an ‘abnormal’ win, said: “Pedometer was an abnormally good horse. He beat an old, seasoned campaigner called Uncle Percy and several other weak horses in the (Sun International). He was a star and won on merit.”

Above: Harold 'Tiger' Wright

The first jockey to rack up multiple Summer Cup wins was Samuel Purcell, who won on Languid (1895), Malgo (1897) and Charcot (1903), but the most successful jockey in the history of race is ‘Tiger’ Wright with five wins, Cape Heath (Jubie, 1946), Nagaina Hall (Bramhall Phoenix, 1954), Java (1956/1958) and White Foam (1960). The legendary Lester Piggott’s name pops up in 1958, when he finished fourth to Java, riding Bleriot.

Other successful Cup jockeys are Weichong Mawing with 4 wins, Roland’s Song, 1991; Sizzling Sun (Father Rooney, 1994); Golden Hoard (1998), and Ilha Da Vitoria (2005), while Piere Strydom’s four-timer included Roland’s Song in 1990, Eventuail in 2002, Tyson (Silvino) in 23004 and Louis The King in 2014. Joe Byrnes and Kevin Shea also share this distinction. Byrnes was on fire in the 1950s and 1960s and rode Casbah (1955), Cuff Link (White Horses, 1963), Will To Win (Wilwyn, 1964) and Merciless Sun (Thunderhead II, 1968), to victory. Shea was successful on Have A Fling (Imperial March, 1982); Ingleside (2001), Wolf Whistle (2003) and Rudra (2008).

Shea also had the longest time between drinks. He had to wait 19 years for his second Summer Cup winner. Benny Little (Hengist, 1961), had a 16-year dry spell before he won his second Cup on Ever Fair (Fellowship) in 1977.

Sources:

www.aro.co.za

www.equilife.co.za

www.southafricanracehorse.wordpress.com

Thanks also to Ormond Ferraris for assisting with some information from the early days of the Betway Summer Cup.