Final field for the Grand Heritage

A full field of 28-runners and two reserves has been unveiled for the inaugural running of The Grand Heritage, sponsored by World Sports Betting, at the Vaal Racecourse on Saturday, October 1.

There’s a 14kg spread between the field for the 1 475m contest with top-weighted runner Pivotal Pursuit set to shoulder 64kg while bottom weight of 50kg will all be carried by Urgent Fury, Analyse This and Bold Rex, all falling into tier three as per the conditions of the race.

“After an initial flood of entries – a total of 102 were received – it was always going to be a tough task to try and whittle the number of horses which met the qualifying criteria down to the final list of runners,” said Jay Harielall, general manager racing operations, said of the task the panel faced to confirm the final field.

“But the fact that there was so much interest in this event was a big positive and we are hoping that it’s a sign that this event will continue to grow in the future,” said Clyde Basel, Phumelela Racing executive.

Of the 28-runners, 10 of them have run and won since their names were put forward as nominees. Those runners include Bulleting Home, Thrust, Irish Pride, Kings Archer, National Key, Humidor, Miracle Bureau, Belenos, Man’s Inn and Urgent Fury.

Jockey arrangements will be announced in due course as well as the fields for The Grand Heritage Consolation and the two 1 200m contests that will also likely host 28-runners.

As far as the readiness of the racing surface, the testing phase was deemed a success after racing on Tuesday which saw the starting stalls placed in the middle of the track and the fields able to utilise the width of the track.

There have been concerns about a draw bias but given that the final race of the day was won by a horse on what is considered to be the “wrong side” of the track those fears may have been allayed.

“As far as the perception of a draw bias is concerned, we saw that regardless of which side of the track a jockey chooses to use, if he has the right horse underneath him then it doesn’t become a factor.”

With a beer garden and performances throughout the day by popular DJ Vin Deysel, as well as entertainment for children on offer it promises to be a great day out. There’s also a big screen to broadcast the Rugby Championship action between Australia and the Springboks.

Another highlight on the day will be the annual running of the Groom’s Race which will see 40 Vaal-based grooms race down the 1 600m straight for a share of R20 000.

Entrance to the event and parking is free and gates open at 10:00.