Equus Awards Log Update
All Eyes on Equus: Top Performers Vie for South African Racing’s Highest Honours
While the final decisions for the Equus Awards rest with the esteemed judging panel—Graeme Hawkins, Nico Kritsiotis, Rouvaun Smit, Deez Dayanand and Vicki Minott—the panel’s deliberations are heavily guided by the Equus Logs, which track each horse’s performances across the season with points allocated according to finishing position and grade of race.
This year, Eight On Eighteen has stamped his authority on the track and is leading the Horse Of The Year standings. The triple Grade 1 winner is also ahead in the Three-Year-Old Male category and the fiercely contested Champion Middle Distance division, where he faces tough competition from Fire Attack, Atticus Finch and The Real Prince. In the same Three-Year-Old Male division, Fire Attack and One Stripe are also in contention—although One Stripe’s recent export to the USA may influence the final call.
Gimme A Prince continues to head up the Champion Sprinter and Champion Older Male categories, but the margins are tight. In the older male division, William Robertson, Oriental Charm, Dave The King and Atticus Finch are all in the mix, while Mia Moo and William Robertson are the key contenders challenging Gimme A Prince for Sprinter honours.
The Champion Older Female category is also shaping up to be a closely fought affair, with Double Grand Slam, Mia Moo and Rascova leading the charge. In the Two-Year-Old categories, Good For You, Charming Cheetah, Chronicle King, Absolutely Yes and Malmesbury Missile are the standout colts, while Direct Hit heads a strong filly lineup that includes Anotherdanceforme, Golden Palm, Green Diamond, One Fine Winter, Elegantrix and Quickstepgal.
The Champion Miler division is packed with quality—Cosmic Speed, Oriental Charm, One Stripe, Dave The King and Double Grand Slam are all potential winners, making this one of the most competitive categories. Meanwhile, the Champion Stayer category features a wide-open field led by King Pelles, Holding Thumbs, Mucho Dinero, My Soulmate and Love Is A Rose.
With several key races still to come, including those on World Pool Gold Cup Day, the points and prospects in each division may yet shift dramatically. The Equus Awards are set to be a celebration of a truly competitive and high-quality racing season and will be held in the Silver Ring at Hollywoodbets Greyville Racecourse on Thursday 14 August.
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LOGS
| HORSE OF THE YEAR | |
| EIGHT ON EIGHTEEN | 160 |
| ONE STRIPE | 96 |
| FIRE ATTACK | 81 |
| DOUBLE GRAND SLAM | 80 |
| GIMME A PRINCE | 75 |
| FATAL FLAW | 72 |
| ORIENTAL CHARM | 72 |
| COSMIC SPEED | 70 |
| THREE-YEAR-OLD MALE | |
| EIGHT ON EIGHTEEN | 160 |
| ONE STRIPE | 96 |
| FIRE ATTACK | 81 |
| COSMIC SPEED | 70 |
| THREE-YEAR-OLD FILLY | |
| FATAL FLAW | 72 |
| FIERY PEGASUS | 60 |
| SPUMANTE DOLCE | 56 |
| MON PETIT CHERIE | 50 |
| OLDER MALE | |
| GIMME A PRINCE | 75 |
| ORIENTAL CHARM | 72 |
| WILLIAM ROBERTSON | 50 |
| DAVE THE KING | 48 |
| ATTICUS FINCH | 44 |
| GLADATORIAN | 44 |
| MONTIEN | 41 |
| THE REAL PRINCE | 40 |
| OLDER FEMALE | |
| DOUBLE GRAND SLAM | 80 |
| MIA MOO | 56 |
| RASCOVA | 48 |
| CHAMPION SPRINTER | |
| GIMME A PRINCE | 60 |
| MIA MOO | 56 |
| WILLIAM ROBERTSON | 50 |
| MILER | |
| COSMIC SPEED | 64 |
| ORIENTAL CHARM | 48 |
| ONE STRIPE | 48 |
| DAVE THE KING | 48 |
| DOUBLE GRAND SLAM | 48 |
| MIDDLE DISTANCE | |
| EIGHT ON EIGHTEEN | 68 |
| FIRE ATTACK | 53 |
| ATTICUS FINCH | 44 |
| THE REAL PRINCE | 40 |
| STAYER | |
| KING PELLES | 28 |
| HOLDING THUMBS | 25 |
| MUCHO DINERO | 12 |
| MY SOUL MATE | 12 |
| LOVE IS A ROSE | 10 |
| SHE’S A BOMBER | 8 |
| TWO-YEAR-OLD MALE | |
| GOOD FOR YOU | 36 |
| CHARMING CHEETAH | 20 |
| CHRONICLE KING | 16 |
| ABSOLUTELY YES | 12 |
| MALMESBURY MISSILE | 10 |
| TWO-YEAR-OLD FEMALE | |
| DIRECT HIT | 40 |
| GREEN DIAMOND | 24 |
| ONE FINE WINTER | 24 |
| ELEGANTRIX | 24 |
| QUICKSTEPGAL | 16 |
| ANOTHERDANCEFORME | 16 |
| GOLDEN PALM | 16 |
