Calvin went back to fetch glory at Turffontein

The last thing co-owner Gary Basel said to jockey Calvin Habib before the race was, “Calvin, you left something out there last year; go and fetch it!”

Calvin followed the instruction to a tee, riding Atticus Finch, trained by Alec Laird, to victory in the richest race in Africa, the R6-million Betway Summer Cup at Turffontein on Saturday.

Basel was referring to last year’s running of Joburg’s premier horse race, when Atticus Finch started as a 11-2 joint-favourite but finished unplaced after being hampered in the running at key moments.

This time around, most punters looked elsewhere for a potential winner and the gelding went off at 20-1.

But the team of Habib, the owners and the Laird stable had a point to prove after their 2023 disappointment. As Basel put it: “This year we had a better plan.”

Long, slow build-up

That better plan involved a considered, patient strategy – as opposed to last year’s helter-skelter run-up which saw Atticus Finch having to win four races in a row just to qualify for the Summer Cup.

After that experience, Laird gave his four-year-old charge a five-month break to catch his breath before commencing a long, slow build-up. Evidence that Atticus Finch was getting back to his best came in mid-winter when he ran second in the Jubilee Stakes at Turffontein and in the Splashout 2200 at Greyville.

Freshened up, he posted two low-key thirds in prep races at the Big T. Though he hadn’t won in more than a year going into this Summer Cup, astute students of form would have approved of his record and, in hindsight, 20-1 represented very good market value.

Habib picks up the tale: “Last year I was super-confident in him, but we were unlucky in the race. When I got offered the ride again, I said I’ve got to make amends…

“I’m so happy for Mr Laird; it’s a great training feat. We worked together hard on this horse. I said to him on Thursday, ‘He’s just got a different aura about him today. He’s on. I just believe in him’.”

‘I love him with all my heart’

Things didn’t go entirely to plan, though. Habib had intended to bounce into the lead from his No 2 starting stall but got bumped as the field jumped away.

“I had to just take my medicine. I thought I was following the right horses and he was travelling so smoothy underneath me. I made my move early and he just fought all the way to the line!

“I’m so proud of this horse. I love him with all my heart… From the day I won his maiden on him, I said to Gary (Basel), ‘He’s top; he’s going to win a big race’.”

Veteran conditioner Laird, a man born into racing royalty and who has seen and won it all, tried hard to contain his emotion in the winner’s circle, but was clearly moved by the moment, heaping thanks on his hard-working team back home and on the patrons who stand by him.

“It’s come at a great time, because it’s been a bit slow lately,” he said, acknowledging his yard’s modest form.

Indeed, the Summer Cup first prize of R3.45-million more than tripled Laird’s stake earnings for the season and rocketed him from the middle reaches of the trainers’ championship log to second place – just behind Cape Town’s Justin Snaith, who has 62 wins to the Randjesfontein man’s nine.

Those numbers give an indication of the power of big stakes and generous sponsorship in horse racing.

The consensus among people at Turffontein was that Betway had done a tremendous job in staging one of the most successful Joburg race days in recent memory.