Gavin Lerena has earned widespread admiration for winning the South African Jockeys Championships this past season chiefly due to the mental grit he showed in burying the albatross of the 2011/2012 season.

On Thursday evening last week, the day before Gavin was officially crowned Jockeys Champion, his cousin Kevin Lerena won the South African cruiserweight boxing belt after an impressively one-sided 12 round victory over the title holder Deon Coetzee, so there will likely be a big family celebration sometime this week.

In the 2011/2012 season Gavin saw a big lead being diminished to virtually nothing in the final month.

He was still one winner clear of Anton Marcus entering the final meeting at Kenilworth but rode a blank to the latter’s double.

He later sat in the jockey’s room shell-shocked and heartbroken.

He admitted, “Every morning after waking up or whatever I was doing in the day it was always in the back of my mind. I thought what could I have done differently, I had it in the bag and I just needed to follow through, but the cards didn’t fall that way. I didn’t have the support he had and it was very hard for me, it took me a long time to overcome it.”

Lerena also admitted that rather than making him mentally stronger the experience actually made him more fearful. This is a reality often seen in golfers after a major has slipped from their grasps – the task of keeping the choking demon at bay in subsequent majors becomes that much more difficult.

He continued, “It’s just great that we’ve got the win under our belt and everything from now on is a bonus.”

Lerena has a riding weight of 57kg and looked to have a tough task with two months of the season to go as he was going neck and neck with the then reigning champion S’Manga Khumalo, whose riding weight of 52,5kg allows him a wider range of opportunities. However, Lerena showed what he is made of in June when breaking a new South African record for the number of winners in a month, 42. His 154 rides that month were achieved at a strike rate of 27.27% and he had three four-timers, four trebles and five doubles. An indication of how taxing it is to chase a jockeys championship is that of those 42 June winners 12 were at Turffontein, nine were at Fairview, eight were at The Vaal, six were at Scottsville, four were at Flamingo Park and three were at Greyville.

The June milestone was the second South African record Lerena has set as he broke the legendary Michael “Muis” Roberts’ mark of 260 when riding 283 winners as an apprentice. He was a twice South African Champion Apprentice last decade.

Lerena said about his approach to this year’s title chase, “I set myself goals from the first day of the season and everything just went to plan. I couldn’t have asked for more, the support from the trainers and owners was really amazing.”

He added, “I had it won for about a week (before the end of the season) and everyone was saying how do you feel and it never really hit me, but last Thursday after the last race it hit me that I’ve done it and I thank God everything fell into place and went according to plan. I feel on top of the world.”

The title chase not only requires extreme levels of mental toughness but also a high level of physical fitness. However, Lerena revealed there was nothing like “racing fitness” and the only time he ever did extra exercise was during recovery periods when he did a lot of swimming.

Lerena has always been known as an outstanding horsemen. He was born into the racing game and was sitting on the back of horses before he could walk.

“I think my love for horses has a lot to do with my passion for the game. Without the horse we’re nothing.”

He said of the immediate future, “I want to take a couple of breaks over the next couple of months, a week here and a week there, but if within striking distance I’m definitely going to give the championships another shout.”

He has had a couple of job offers from overseas but has turned them down for now, “I’ve missed out a lot on my son’s growing up over the past couple of months and I just want to spend a lot of time with my family at this stage.”

Lerena spoke about his cousin Kevin, “He’s 23 years-old now and eight years ago he rode a winner at Clairwood – now he’s a heavyweight boxer! He’s a true sportsman and he’s very dedicated to his sport and I’m just so blessed that he’s back on top. He’s mentally and physically a very focused man and I’m very proud of him.”

The professionalism Gavin and Kevin have displayed this year appears to run in the family and another of the cousins Brandon is also a fine jockey in his own right.

Gavin revealed, “We’re very competitive and from a young age myself, Kevin, Brandon and my other cousins Steven, Evan and all of them, whether it was racing around the farm on horses or our bicycles, or cricket or soccer or rugby, we were very competitive and loved winning.”

Gavin has not ridden work for the last three months due to his travelling commitments and he concluded, “I love riding work and can’t wait to get back to the tracks and get to enjoy the horses in the mornings again.”

By David Thiselton

Picture: Champion Jockey Gavin Lerena

MJ Byleveld returns to action at Durbanville tomorrow after being off for over five weeks, the result of a horrific, eight stitches-needing gash just below his right knee when kicked at Kenilworth.

“The rehab took a little bit longer than I thought but I was able to resume riding work two weeks last Saturday,” says the Northern Transvaal-born Marthinus Johannes who will be 34 next month. “It’s good to be back, particularly when the yard is in form.”

Vaughan Marshall had four winners here last week and the Milnerton trainer may waste little time in returning to the winner’s box because Mystical Twilight looks nailed on for the opening Welcome To Durbanville Maiden.

You don’t get many Grade 1-placed horses running in maidens and, while Mystical Twilight may have been flattered by his third in the SA Nursery, his subsequent fourth to Purple Mountains looks more than good enough.

“He is quite highly rated and, while he hasn’t been on the course, there is nothing in the race that looks like giving us trouble,” is the jockey’s assessment.

But the early betting suggests that King Of The North might well worry him. The Eric Sands newcomer was all the rage when Betting World opened him at 5-1 yesterday. The price tumbled as the money poured on and by 2.30pm 22-10 was the best you could get.

Byleveld considers Victorious Jay in the Z.A.C. Hamilton Handicap the next best of his five rides but this three-year-old had to be ridden four furlongs out when scoring over 1 400m last time. This is 100m less and on a faster course so the 6-1 chance could struggle against the likes of Ochoncar (5-1) and Twentymanjones (6-1).

Donovan Dillon makes his Cape Town debut and the best of his three rides could be Team Valor’s Megan Jones in race two. This filly ran quite well behind Princess Royal when making her debut for Justin Snaith in January, she is a generous-looking 8-1 and Mike Robinson says: “I am hoping she will run well.”

However Supercilious, odds-on last time, has more recent form claims and the 12-10 favourite may be able to confirm the placings with La Rochelle (22-10) even though the Bass filly started slowly and so should, in theory, get closer.

Aspara also has losses to recover in the Ladies Day Maiden and the running of Mystical Twilight (less than a length behind her in Purple Mountains’ race) should provide a pointer. Just A Jag, nibbled at yesterday, looks the danger.

Race four is wide open but 5-1 shot Frenni could be another for the Marshall-Byleveld combination. She came from some way back to get up close home over 1 400m last time and looks capable of further improvement.

Gift Of Rain took a long time to win a maiden and, surprisingly, she was strongly supported yesterday (4-1 to 28-10). That price looks too short but money usually talks so don’t write her off.

There is not much between Exclusive Knight, River Blaze and Baksteen in the last while Charlie Strong gets the longer trip he has been looking for. However Archie is comparatively lightly raced and could be the answer at 5-1.

By Michael Clower

Picture: MJ Byleveld

Rising star Donovan Dillon is moving from Durban to Cape Town to become first jockey to Michael Robinson.

He said: “I will also be riding a lot for Mr Snaith and I have good support behind me from a couple of other Cape Town trainers.”

Dillon, 21, has ridden nearly 130 winners including this year’s Lonsdale Stirrup Cup on Solid Speed and he finished second on Melliflora in last Saturday’s Thekwini Stakes. He has impressed a number of the Summerveld-based Cape Town trainers in recent months.

Robinson, who will have around 50 horses this season, said: “I need a jockey who can ride work for me every morning and give me feedback. Donovan looks naturally gifted and he has been riding a lot for my father-in-law Doug Campbell who speaks highly of him.”

By Michael Clower

Picture: Donovan Dillon (Nkosi Hlophe)

Mike Azzie will rest his Gr 1 Premier’s Champions Stakes winner Rabada and give him his African Horse Sickness (AHS) vaccinations before aiming him at the R2 million Ready To Run Stakes over 1400m at Turffontein on October 31. He will then possibly send the Summerhill Stud Brave Tin Soldier colt to Cape Town for two big Gr 1 events, the Grand Parade Cape Guineas and the Investec Cape Derby.

His Premier’s Champions Stake third-placed Go Deputy colt Abashiri will also be rested and given his AHS vaccinations. He will then be aimed at next Autumn’s Triple Crown.

Azzie also has big race hopes for Gr 1 Thekwini Stakes runner up Melliflora and his older horse Deputy Jud.

His Summerveld Champions Season string were on their way back home to Randjesfontein yesterday.

Azzie has no doubt the unbeaten Rabada will stay the 2000m trip of the Cape Derby and said, “Anton (Marcus) has always maintained that is the trip he is looking for and that he would be best on a galloping track. We didn’t give him any stamina work at Summerveld, we kept his work short and sharp, because of the nature of the 1400m and 1600m races he ran in at Greyville. We haven’t seen the best of Abashiri yet. He is one very serious horse and is a very exciting prospect for the future. If you analyse the way the race panned out on Saturday, when he wanted to make his run he had to be switched out and come eight or nine wide into the straight. It could otherwise easily have been a different result. He was not as sharp as Rabada because the penny hasn’t dropped with him yet and when it does the sky could be the limit.”

Azzie didn’t allow the one week postponement of Super Saturday to add any pressure and simply took the view that everybody was in the same boat.

He said about the Querari filly Melliflora, who ran on well from midfield for a 0,25 length second in the Thekwini, “She is gangly and immature and I have not let up on her, so now that I can give her some down time I think she will do some developing and blossom. I think she will also prefer a galloping track and the way she cruised to victory at Scottsville in her previous start has made me quite excited about her.”

He was also pleased by the Judpot colt Deputy Jud’s 6,5 length eighth in the Gr 1 Champions Cup over 1800m and said, “It was an improved performance and I have been given permission to do what I have wanted to do for a year, geld him. I think he will now keep his mind on the job and do what he’s supposed to do.”

Azzie said he had left Summerved with “heavy feet”.

He elaborated, “It is the best training centre in South Africa. It is away from the humdrum of racing and the fact that my unsound horses came sound there speaks volumes for the tracks. I love KZN, the staff and people are so friendly and always make our visit pleasurable.”

Azzie became emotional in the winner’s enclosure on Saturday when talking about his own staff and this includes his younger son Ryan who has recently joined older son Adam as part of “The Azzman” team. Yesterday he could not help drawing a parallel between his two sons and the Snaith brothers Justin and Jonathan, whose results as a team speak for themselves.

He said, “Ryan was always the one who spent most time at the stables with me as a kid, but is business orientated and always has his finger on the pulse. Adam is laid back and will not allow the silly things that have sometimes worried me to get to him. I will one day be more in the background offering advice because together I think they will make a formidable team.”

By David Thiselton

One of the country’s most underrated sires, The Scott Brothers’ USA-bred Storm Cat stallion Mogok, had the fourth Gr 1 winner of his career when the Mike de Kock-trained Wild One stormed home on Saturday to convert favouritism in the country’s premier staying race, the eLan Property Group Gold Cup over 3200m.

Mogok was originally owned and bred by the one of the world’s most prominent racing families, the Niarchos’s.

The Scott Brothers seized an opportunity to bring in a stallion with a magnificent international pedigree when noticing Mogok up for auction on a French Sale as an unraced two-year-old.

The Niarchos family are known for their high quality band of broodmares. The Scotts had also noticed Mogok had been given two wind operations before attempts to race him were abandoned. Therefore, they knew the connections must have thought a lot of him.

Another bonus was that, as a mere two-year-sold, he would have a long stud career ahead of him. Indeed, despite having already thrown eleven crops, he is now only 15 years of age, so has a good few seasons still left in him.

At the time of Mogok’s purchase, Storm Cat was one of the most expensive stallion s in the world at around $400,000 a service with no guaranteed return.

His female line was even more attractive. Mogok is a half-brother to Machiavellian, who was one of the leading sires in Europe. His third dam is Natalma. The dam of the possibly most influential sire in the history of the thoroughbred breed, Northern Dancer

Mogok is also a half-brother to two French-based Gr 1 winners, Exit To Nowhere and Coup de Genie.

Furthermore, close to the time of the Scotts’ purchase, Mogok’s family produced a winner of one of the world’s most prestigious races, the Gr 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, with the Niarchos-bred Nashwan colt Bago.

Robin Scott pointed out breeding was not an exact science, “it’s luck”, and what separated a good stallion from the also rans was that when a big horse was produced they were “very big.”

However, in Robin’s opinion, Mogok could well have been a champion sire if standing in the Cape, where the mares are of superior quality.

Mogok has not only produced four Gr 1 winners from the lesser KZN mares, but two of them have taken on some of the best in the world and beaten them. His daughter Gypsy’s Warning won a Gr 1 in the USA, while The Apache won the prestigious Gr 1 Arlington Million, beating many international Gr 1 winners, before being demoted to second after an objection. The Apache also finished second in two Gr 1s in Dubai, having earlier won a Gr 2 there.

Yet Robin is of the belief that the big, strong and rangy Mogok colt Orbison, who downed the like of Pocket Power and Bold Silvano when winning the Gr 1 Champions Cup of 2010, was even better than The Apache. Unfortunately, Orbison broke down in Dubai and never raced again after leaving South African shores.

Wild One has benefitted from a long layoff and is at present as sound as a bell. His versatility has been displayed in his last three starts, finishing second in both the Gr 3 Cup Trial over 1800m and the KZN Breeders Million Mile before winning the Gold Cup over 3200m. He is still lightly raced, despite being six-years-old, and looks to have a bright season ahead of him, although a lot could depend on the punishment the handicapper hands him for Saturday’s win.

Meanwhile, Scott Brothers have another blue-blooded formerly Niarchos-owned stallion standing on the farm, Eightfold Path. He is owned by the Chinese national Hui Guo. Eightfold Path is by six-time Gr 1 winner and three-time American champion sire Giant’s Causeway out of the European Champion Kingmambo mare Divine Proportions, who won five Gr 1 races in France. Guo has a few broodmares on the farm too and is likely to be looking ahead to when China unbans horseracing, which looks to soon become a reality.

ThereEightfold Path showed tremendous speed to win a Gr 3 over six furlongs as a two-year-old in France and after going wrong he came back to win a Listed event over a mile as a five-year-old. Robin believes he could become an important sprint stallion.

Mogok and Eightfold Path stand for bargain fees of R20,000 and R10,000 respectively.

However, Robin did divulge that he would likely be more selective with the mares he accepts for Mogok this season.

Robin and his brother Des have a proud history in breeding over nearly a half-a-century and are seldom out of the news. Their success is based on a combination of careful stallion selection and a high quality broodmare band. On top of the imported stallions, they have also brought in excellent pedigreed mares from USA and Europe.

The first of these imported mares was Ofa (Ribot), who produced the mighty Durban July and dual J&B Met winner Politician. Others were Carnet De Dance (Dance In Time), who went on to produce July and Dubai Duty Free winner Ipi Tombe, and Northern Banner (Nothern Dancer), who produced July-winner Teal.

By David Thiselton

Picture: eLan Property Group Gold Cup winner Wild One (Nkosi Hlophe)