What will it take to create a July or Met in Jhb??

Oscar said "Its inconceivable that Gauteng does not have at least one raceday where people are turned away at the gates because the course is full.."

100% true! Every sport has a one off event which attracts even those people who don't even pause to look until the next year. Wimbledon, The Derby, Royal Ascot, Grand National, Melbourne Cup, The Arc, Tour de France, Comrades..etc

For JHB not to have it's 1 'showcase' day per year that pulls in the whole city like the Met or July is a shame. Most horseracing regions manage to get at least 1 day onto the general social calendar. Mostly they use non-racing bait like booze and fashion (the his and hers for those who don't care which end of a horse faces forward).

But imho the 'stature' of big events also must come from the inside of the sport first. Eg. every cyclist wants the TdeFrance, and every Tennis player wants Wimbledon.

So I would say the first step would be to make your big event an 'invitation' race in addition to local entrants. Offer paid tickets to sweeten the deal, but the event must be elevated that even the uneducated know that it's absolutely the top the sport has to offer. Clearly no race right now will be really rated without a reigning champion like Pocket Power or the top 3 in the July betting happy to give it a miss.

It has got to be more than just about money, because for the real contenders it's about the glory is just as important and the money just proves it. Until you get that mix right, you just don't have a Met or July.

1 last point, Dubai did it on a global scale with a force of will. Even though money was no object, the Dubai World Cup ran as a listed race until it showed it could consistently pull in Gr1 runners.