Horse power drives Kabelo Matsunyane to the top at Durban July

“Full credit to that young man there!” That was among the first comments trainer Brett Crawford blurted out after his horse Winchester Mansion won the 2023 Hollywoodbets Durban July at Greyville on Saturday.

Crawford was referring to jockey Kabelo Matsunyane, who drove the four- year-old gelding to victory in one of the more memorable finishes the great race has seen in its 127-year history.

“He’s had phenomenal success this season and he rode a great race!” added the trainer. “He has set himself for a big future.”

Matsunyane could hardly have had a tougher challenge in the closing stages of the R5-million July, with master jockey Piere Strydom alongside him. Strydom was vying for the lead on race favourite See It Again – a proven finisher of the first order.

Cool thinking

“When he came to join us, I had my stick on the right. I knew if he hung out I could change my stick to the left and get a bit more out of my horse,” explained the young rider who graduated from the SA Jockey Academy less than a year ago.

That is some cool thinking under high pressure.

In the end, Matsunyane and Winchester Mansion prevailed by 0.25 lengths. Of course, See It Again, a year younger, was carrying 3.5kg more – which in the end probably made the difference. As they say, you don’t have to be the best horse to win the July, just the best weighted.

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“Whoooo! We did it!” exclaimed the young man as he faced the TV cameras.

In an interview way back in 2019, Matsunyane was asked who his favourite jockey was.

“Mr Piere Strydom. He has been one of the biggest inspirations and role models in my career this far. His hard work and dedication have allowed him to ride at such top level in the industry and achieving goals such as winning the Vodacom Durban July and riding abroad. I admire his work ethic and would like to aspire to be as successful as him one day.”

He might not be quite there yet, but Saturday – and a fateful duel with his hero – was a giant leap forward.

Diminutive size

Matsunyane had no background in horse racing before 2016, when he was in matric at Khutlo Tharo Secondary School on the Highveld. Back then, his father took him to a careers expo in Sandton. There, he visited the booth of the SA Jockey Academy, where his diminutive size immediately piqued interest.

He filled in the forms for the world-renowned school at Summerveld near Durban. He then asked his dad to take him to the races to see what it was all about.

One visit to the Vaal racecourse was all it took; this was the job for him.

“I believe everyone needs a deeply seated passion in their life. Not a hobby but a consuming, addictive passion,” Kabelo writes on his Linked In page.

“I found my passion and purpose when introduced to the sport of horse racing.”

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In his second year in the academy, the star pupil was selected to spend a month at the British Racing School. In his third year, he rode in France in a Future Racing Stars race and finished fourth.

While never challenging to be champion apprentice, Kabelo quietly won admirers in the training ranks, many of whose names he burbled out in thanks as he stood victorious on the Greyville turf on Saturday.

Since his graduation from the academy in August 2022, the young man has truly hot his straps in the irons, so to speak. He has racked up winner after winner and currently stands at seventh on the national log. This is a notable achievement at his age, earning him plaudits as the most improved jockey in South Africa.

Winchester Mansion was his 101 st winner for the 2022/23 season.

“I love the power of how the horse has allowed me to take the reins and work towards achievements I had never even thought of before,” he says.