Favourite Star Major gets Mickaelle and draw 4.
The horses and their jockeys for the 2026 Durban July race have been finalised. Picture: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
A barrier draw of No 4 will probably see current Hollywoodbets Durban July favourite Star Major shorten further in pre-race betting.
The next three runners in the odds, Note To Self, Wish List and Regulation, also drew favourably at 11, 7 and 2 respectively when the final field for South Africa’s most famous horse race was unveiled on Tuesday.
Jockeys in the July don’t necessarily want to start from pole position on the inside running rail at Greyville’s 2200m starting post, preferring a slot a tad wider – to avoid either being shunted forward into an unwanted lead or being shuffled back by the charging pack and getting boxed in.
Because of what it is – Africa’s greatest horse race with a place in history and a big purse (a massive R10-million this year) up for grabs – the July is notorious for roughhouse racing tactics and the start, in particular, can get hectic.
Gate 4 is just about perfect to allow horse and rider to have the so-called “run-of-the-race”: assessing an unfolding dynamic and positioning themselves optimally handy for the challenge ahead.
So, Star Major’s trainer James Crawford and jockey Mickaelle Michel would have been well satisfied with the luck of the draw when the July field selection was revealed.
They wouldn’t have been as pleased with the horse’s weight allocation of 57kg, which is rather a hefty burden for a three-year-old to carry against older horses in a Grade 1 race. Still, the colt has earned his high rating with recent smashing victories in the WSB Guineas (Grade 2) and the Daily News 2000 (Grade 1).
Punters and bookmakers haven’t been deterred by Star Major’s likely impost, propelling him to 3.33 favouritism in recent weeks.
New conditions of the race – with a 10kg weight spread from 62kg to 52kg across the 18 runners – is meant to level the playing field and give heavier weights a better chance than they seem to have had in recent years.
The top weight will be carried by Legal Counsel, one of five runners from Justin Snaith’s champion stable, which is striving for a sixth July winning sash. Legal Counsel drew alongside the favourite in starting stall No 5 and jockey Callan Murray will have the perfect guide through the melee.
Snaith was happy with the barrier outcomes for all of his five, with his widest starter being Note To Self at 11, a position that will not much faze master jockey Richard Fourie.
Four “foreign” jockeys will ride in the 2026 July: Australian-based Mark du Plessis, Chad Schofield and Zac Lloyd and France’s Michel. Du Plessis has had a long, successful career that has taken in Zimbabwe, Singapore and New Zealand, while the two youngsters are sons of sometime top SA jocks Glyn Schofild and Jeff Lloyd.
Zac Lloyd made headlines last week when he rode a winner at the prestigious Royal Ascot meet in the UK.
Michel, currenty on an extended working sabbatical in SA, will be trying to become the first female rider to win the July. It’s a minor surprise that SA’s top female jockey Rachel Venniker did not secure a big race booking.
However, there are five female horses among the final 18 – way more than usual for a July: Mocha Blend, Minogue, Olivia’s Way, Hazy Dazy and Wish List.
2026 Hollywoodbets Durban July
THE FINAL FIELD
[draw, name, weight, trainer (jockey)]
1 Isivivane 52kg Peter Muscutt (Sean Veale)
2 Regulation 52kg Justin Snaith (Zac Lloyd)
3 The Ultimate King 56.5kg Tony Peter (Kabelo Matsunyane)
4 Star Major 57kg James Crawford (Mickaelle Michel)
5 Legal Counsel 62kg Justin Snaith (Callan Murray)
6 Hazy Dazy 54.5kg Corne Spies (Trent Mayhew)
7 Wish List 54.5kg Justin Snaith (Andrew Fortune)
8 Gladatorian 61.5kg Stuart Ferrie (Muzi Yeni)
9 Viva’s Liberte 53kg Candice Bass (Craig Zackey)
10 Native Ruler 58.5kg Justin Snaith (Keagan de Melo)
11 Note To Self 55kg Justin Snaith (Richard Fourie)
12 Zeitz 53kg Andre Nel (Serino Moodley)
13 Mocha Blend 56.5kg Frank Robinson (Tristan Godden)
14 I Salute You 54.5kg Peter Muscutt (Mark du Plessis)
15 Olivia’s Way 55kg Roy Magner (JP van der Merwe)
16 Minogue 56kg Candice & Tammy Dawson (Gavin Lerena)
17 King Pelles 59kg Gavin van Zyl (Chad Schofield)
18 Aladdin’s Lamp 53kg Mike & Mathew de Kock (Calvin Habib)
1st reserve: Choisaanada; 2nd reserve Curious Girl
