South African trainer Mike de Kock is looking towards Australia to enhance his business
Champion South African trainer Mike De Kock is slowly building a team of horses in Australia that he hopes one day may race in Dubai.
With his son Mathew in a training partnership with Robbie Griffiths at Cranbourne, de Kock was in Melbourne during the week looking over the team.
He saw South African galloper Najem Suhail win a jump-out at Cranbourne on Monday then Magical Land, who had campaigned in Dubai earlier in the year, finish third at Sandown on Wednesday.
De Kock has successfully campaigned South African horses in Dubai during their Carnival, which runs from January to World Cup night in March and would like to do the same with his Australian horses.
And what he is doing now is a learning curve for the future.
“I’m trying to get something going between here and Dubai because the export of South African horses has been killing us,” de Kock said.
“I have had a lot of South African horses that have done well in South Africa go on and do well in Dubai, but I don’t know anything about Australian racing.
“I’m keen to marry that form up and get something going between the Carnival in Dubai and racing in Australia with Australian horses.
“Some of the owners that I have in my yard are keen to go that route, purchase horses here, race them here and then have a crack at Dubai, but then bring them back.
“It’s a global village racing and if we can move horses easily and move them into a place like Dubai, participate in the Carnival, then why not.
“It’s good for Australia and it’s good for Dubai.”
De Kock said Najem Suhail was a Group 1 galloper in South Africa but had been off the scene for over two years through export difficulties and injury while Magical Land could be a stakes horse.
He said bringing out those horses it will enable him to better understand the Australian form and if exporting South African horses does open de Kock will be positioned to send the right ones.
“When we get our movements right in South Africa there is a massive opportunity given the weakness of the currency (in South Africa) to bring them here to race,” de Kock said.
“What you pay here is a lot of dollars, but in South Africa it is much cheaper.
“The attraction with Australia is prize money which is some of the best in the world and it’s a well-run industry down here as well”
