South African racing ran on two fronts this week, with meetings at Durbanville and Greyville producing winners that told a good story on both coasts. But look closely at the declarations sheet from both cards and one name jumps out twice: Paarl Valley trainer Glen Kotzen sent out a winner at Durbanville and then did it twice more at Greyville, a quiet three-timer that bridged a thousand kilometres of SA racing in a single day.
Durbanville: A Morning Double For Justin Snaith
At Durbanville, it was Justin Snaith’s stable that set the pace. Miami Summer, ridden by Juan Paul v’d Merwe, made it into the winner’s enclosure after a form line that had promised without quite delivering, and Royal Light, partnered by Richard Fourie, followed suit later on the card. Two winners from one stable at the same meeting is no small feat on a competitive Race Coast card, and it capped a good day for a yard that has built its name on precisely this kind of depth — a trainer with runners capable of winning in different races, at different distances, for different reasons.
Elsewhere on the Durbanville card, Glen Kotzen’s Born of Fire, ridden by Anaas Mosaheb, added his own name to the day’s winners list — a result that, on its own, might have passed as a solid midweek success for the Paarl Valley operation. It turned out to be only the opening chapter.
Greyville: Kotzen Strikes Twice To Complete The Treble
Over at Greyville, the Kotzen colours were out again, and this time the stable doubled up. Gold Gold Baby, with Chad Little back in the saddle after riding her to a career-best placing last time out, made all the difference in a race where fitness and timing mattered, coming back from a rest with her form clearly building in the right direction. Later on the same card, Sesame — a mare who had been knocking on the door with a string of competitive efforts — finally got her nose in front for jockey Anaas Mosaheb, rounding out a light-but-lethal weight change that suited her down to the ground.
Glen Kotzen has been a fixture at the top of South African training for the best part of two decades, a Paarl Valley handler whose stable has produced Group 1 winners and Equus Award contenders over the years. Days like this one — a winner bookending a card at one venue, then two more at a completely different track later the same day — are a reminder of just how wide the net a top yard has to cast, and how much organisation sits behind what looks, from the stands, like a simple walk into the winner’s enclosure.
If you’re following today’s action at either Durbanville or Greyville, the full racecard and form guide for both meetings is at cfox.co.za/predictions.
