Early opening of Durban July ante-post bets

Ante-post betting on South Africa’s biggest horse race, the Durban July, has been officially opened by the race’s sponsor Hollywoodbets.

Sharing favouritism at 5/1 are See It Again and Mucho Dinero – both of whom race in the colours of prolific owner Nic Jonsson.

Michael Roberts-trained See It Again was runner-up in the 2023 Durban July, while Mucho Dinero has recently won four races in a row in Cape Town and is talked about as Snaith Racing’s “July Horse”.

Winners of the weekend’s Gauteng Fillies Guineas and Gauteng Guineas at Turffontein, Gimme A Nother (11/2) and Sandringham Summit (13/2), respectively, are next in the odds.

Recent Cape Town Met winner Double Superlative – another Jonsson charge – is quoted at 12/1, while the 2023 Durban July champion, Winchester Mansion, is at 16/1.

This is probably the earliest anyone has opened a public book on a race in this country in recent years – a full five months before the July starter’s bell is due to clang at Greyville racecourse on 6 July.

And it’s about 10 weeks before the deadline for first entries in mid-April.

Hollywoodbets, a phenomenally successful bookmaking firm – that grew from small beginnings in Durban and has lately come to the financial rescue of swathes of the country’s racing industry – is intent on stirring up long-range interest in the Grade 1, R5 million race that now bears its name.

It has posted the names of 33 top-ranked horses on its initial betting board.

Many of these horses will not be in the eventual 18-horse lineup, while others might well be.

In 2023, there were 73 first entries.

It is important to note that bets placed on nonrunners are not refundable (for more information, see the ante-post rules).

The attraction of ante-post betting is that punters can get longer odds on early fancies than might be the case closer to race time.

Punters can, of course, ask for odds on horses not yet quoted.

In 2023, Hollywoodbets’ opening ante-post price (in April) on eventual winner Winchester Mansion was 50-1.

A quick perusal of this year’s odds throws up tempting longshots, like Zeus (20/1), who also won at Turffontein on Saturday; 2023 Summer Cup victor Royal Victory (33/1) and joint 50/1 offerings Royal Aussie and William Iron Arm.

Given her facile Fillies Guineas win and the sky-high praise of her trainer Mike de Kock, Gimme A Nother’s 11/2 might end up the best value we’ll get on her.