Page 20 - January 6 2012

TIMES AND NUMBERS
When things happen in Brazil’s racing industry
All the purses added together total R$4 million. ($2.15 mil. US).
by Rafael “Tuco” Vicensotto De Giuli
The Board of Directors of the Jockey Club de Sorocaba is celebrating an increase in the number of horses enrolled to race and also in the Futurities to be held in 2012.
RACING SEASON
The races held at Jockey Club de Sorocaba racetrack are the most prestigious in Brazil. This race track is exclusively for Quarter Horses. In 2011, we had 25 days of racing. In 2012, there will be 26 days. These race days are distributed throughout the year, mainly on two Saturdays each month. In the case
of back-to-back races, the trials are conducted on Saturday and the finals are on Sunday.
PURSES
There are 319 two-year-olds enrolled in the 2012 Gran Prix, which will run for a total of R$1.5 million (Approx. $820,000 US) guaranteed. This amount does not include the purses for stakes races such as the GP Super Sprint ($108,000 US), GP Brazilian Futurity ($278,000 US) and GP Megarace ($376,000 US). All the purses added together total R$4 million ($2.15 million US).
The 2012 Quarter Horse racing season will start with the trials to the big Bank of American AQHA South America Racing Challenge Championship, on Jan. 28, 2012. To close the year, we will have the GP Encerramento, with a record purse for this stakes of R$400,000 ($215,000 US).
Before the main racing season starts at the Jockey Club de Sorocaba, there are some unofficial two- year-old races that are conducted from November
to January. Some people say the unofficial races are too soon to start a horse, especially without doping control. I’ll explain why, based on the dates and tim- ing of the Brazilian breeding season, sales, and typical training schedules.
BREEDING SEASON
The Brazilian breeding season goes mainly from August to December. This means that, just like in the U.S., most of the foaling happens during the winter—in our case in July. On the other hand, it allows us to import stallions that will also keep breed- ing in the U.S., either by leasing, in the case of Eyesa Special, or by full purchase in the case of Tres Seis.
On average, the foals will be weaned the fol- lowing January and February. The breeder then has
anywhere from one year to one year and five months to prepare the babies to sell. By this time, there are plenty of horses on the farms!
YEARLING SALES
The yearling sales are held mainly from February thru July. Breeders conduct their own, individual sales, with 30-50 yearlings offered at each sale. Two or three breeders may form partner- ships that last for many years.
We have installment sales in Brazil. So the final purchase price, in most of the sales, is 20-times (parcels) the value announced by the auctioneer at the moment the sale is final. In other words, if you bid 5,000 Reais, you will pay that value for 20 months, for a total of 100,000 Reais. Also, almost all sales are broadcast live on open TV as well as on the Internet. (For a more detailed explanation of Brazilian yearling sales, see “Around The Globe” in the May 6, 2011 issue of Speedhorse.)
To put it all together, consider a foal that was born on July 24, 2011. He will be weaned at approximately six months of age in the middle of January, 2012. As yearling, he will be sold in any of the yearling sales from February thru July, 2013.
If this yearling was bought by someone who usually runs horses in the aforementioned unoffi- cial races, this yearling will be started under saddle from May to July, 2013, depending on the trainer. If we consider July as the main breaking month, four months later he needs to be fit for the November races, held both in a city on the border of Brazil and Paraguay, and at Bahia, a Northeast Brazilian State.
The July 24, 2011, foal would be two years and five months old for the unofficial races. But a horse foaled in September would only be two years and two months old when asked to run his full potential under poorly kept track conditions.
To run at the Jockey Club de Sorocaba racetrack, the two-year-olds are started under saddle in July to run in March of the next year. They have much more time to get fit before racing.
While there are lots of critics of our racing sched- ule and rules, I may say that I can’t wait to see new champions emerging on the track. The good news is that improvements are on the way.
*The current coin in Brazil is “Real.” “Reais” is the plural of Real. The Real symbol is “R$.” The current exchange rate used in this article is R$1,86 to $1.
18 SPEEDHORSE, January 6, 2012
AROUND THE GLOBE