Variety Club to stay in SA until next year

Variety Club will be staying in South Africa until next year’s Grade 1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, although he will be raced sparingly in order not to take too much out of him before a planned overseas campaign that will include racing in Dubai, Singapore and Hong Kong.
His next intended target is the Grade 1 Rising Sun Gold Challenge at Clairwood on June 9, although that will be his last outing of the current season.
The dual Guineas winning Var colt will be brought back in the Cape Sizzling Summer Season with the Queen’s Plate in mind.
The connections, who have decided against sending him on an arduous journey to reach December’s International meeting in Hong Kong, are hoping that Dubai’s import protocol relating to South African horses will have changed by next season, allowing him to be flown there directly after fulfilling his quarantine requirements out here.
If that does happen it would allow him to be flown out in mid-February, six weeks before Dubai’s World Cup night.
Derek Brugman, racing manager to Variety Club’s owner Markus Jooste, said: “Markus gets so much pleasure out of watching this horse race. He loves racing locally and loves supporting South African racing. He said the money was not important, so his decision wasn’t determined by economics.”
Racing South Africa released a press statement this week that said: “New guidelines are being considered at this year’s World Organisation for Animal Health’s (OIE) General Assembly at the end of May. If adopted, the changes will potentially improve the way in which countries infected with African Horse Sickness (AHS) are able to regain their free status following an outbreak.”
Additionally, the statement said that with “the imminent validation of a new diagnostic test for AHS, the RT PCR, South Africa is confident that it will be in a position to resume trading in the near future.”
However, nothing forces any country to change their import protocols.
Currently the relevant export protocols require a horse to spend 21 days in vector protected isolation at the Kenilworth Quarantine Station, 90 days residency in Mauritius and then 30 days in Europe before being allowed in Dubai (60 days for Hong Kong bound horses).
Variety Club would have to undergo that journey next winter if the protocols are not changed. Brugman said Variety Club would still race under Joey Ramsden’s name overseas, although an agreement is likely to be made with Mike de Kock whereby Ramsden could use his training infrastructure in Dubai.
Variety Club’s target for Dubai’s World Cup night would either be the Godolphin Mile or the Dubai Duty Free over 1800m.

Gold Circle

Good news

Good News for my CTC selections.lol

he got nothing to prove staying here ,only has a few races in this country that will suit him ...queeens plate clairwood mile and maybe the met and the group one mile at turfontein in march..he is one of the best milers iv seen for a long time and a real pity he aint going to hong kong singapore europe etc...dubai racing aint my cuppa t sorry..

pirates Wrote:

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> he got nothing to prove staying here ,only has a
> few races in this country that will suit him
> ...queeens plate clairwood mile and maybe the met
> and the group one mile at turfontein in march..he
> is one of the best milers iv seen for a long time
> and a real pity he aint going to hong kong
> singapore europe etc...dubai racing aint my cuppa
> t sorry..


agree pirates this is 1 horse that i think will hold his own ...even at the ascot festival....probably better than all the horses that m de kok ventured into europe with....this is a true champion...

Dubai is just for the money,those races hold nothing in terms of stallion potential or international recognition

Must say Dubai racing does nothing for me but look forward to watching it run here for another season.

I also think Dubai racing is boring,made interesting because of MDK and a commentator with a decent voice..

He (VC) could have taken on the best in Frankel this year...

Really surprised to see how 4 opinions here agree that Dubai has no meaning to them. Now that they said it, I agree. It took me a few minutes to put my finger on what's missing. There is no integrity I think. The whole thing has just been bought and paid for from beginning to end, so while great horses may race there, Dubai isn't what made them great. I think I would MUCH rather see Black caviar go to UK than to Dubai and sell out.

Jack, i think that because Dubai comes at the wrong time of the year for the top European horses takes a lot of the interest away from it.In the UK no one gets excited about the Dubai carnival until World Cup night,the rest of the carnival is just an alternative to plumton and Folkestone during the winter.Were lucky if we take a handfull of bets on Dubai racing per meeting..

Dubai getting a knock here, so I guess I'll be one of the lone voices to stick up for it.
The standard at the carnival is far higher than most give it credit for.
When the races are judged on their merit instead of the hype and history of past glories elsewhere, they more than hold their own.
The money on offer is exactly what ensures that.

2 things I like about Dubai
Our horses Trainers and Jockeys perform,
and
NO CAPE CRAWL!
They really go like clappers..lol:D