Crawford, Michel land 1st G1 in Daily News 2000
Star Major storms home to give S.A. trainer and French jockey their biggest win to date
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Jockey Mickaelle Michel covering her face in disbelief after Star Major crossed the line first to give the French rider her maiden Grade 1 win in the Daily News 2000 (2,000m) on May 30.
PHOTO: RACE COAST
DURBAN – Trainer James Crawford’s Star Major put himself firmly in the picture for the Grade 1 Hollywoodbets Durban July (2,200m) after a smashing victory in the two-million rand (S$157,000) Grade 1 Daily News 2000 (2,000m) at Greyville on May 30.
In a carbon copy of his last-start victory in the Grade 2 WSB Guineas (1,600m) on May 2, when also ridden by visiting French rider Mickaelle Michel, Star Major ($25) swept past his rivals to score by 1½ lengths to give the 30-year-old her first Grade 1 success in 12 years of riding.
Craig Zackey set a solid early pace on Viva’s Liberte with two of the more fancied runners, Note To Self (Andrew Fortune) and Jan Van Goyen (Callan Murray), well back in the early exchanges.
Viva’s Liberte led into the straight chased by Chronicle King (Muzi Yeni), whose challenge soon petered out.
Crossing the subway, Happy Verse was making progress under Richard Fourie while Note To Self sneaked up on the inside of the pack. Meanwhile, Star Major was making ground quickly.
The Querari three-year-old colt was chased home by Happy Verse and Note To Self, with pacemaker Viva’s Liberty staying on for fourth.
The disappointment was Jan Van Goyen, who was never in the race and finished seventh. The Mike and Mathew de Kock-trained galloper may well be a better horse over much shorter.
Mickaelle Michel proudly lifting the trophy with her partner, Frederic Spanu.
PHOTO: RACE COAST
Michel – who began her riding stint in the Rainbow Nation from December 2025 – became the first female jockey to win a South African classic.
She was over the moon and hopes to be on board should Star Major go for the Durban July at Greyville on July 4.
“I’m very grateful to this country. They welcome me so much and the more I stay, the more they give me better horses,” she said.
“I finally feel I’m in the place people can enjoy my work, my skill and I’m very thankful for that.
“Today, he was a little hot before the race. But around the 1,500m, we went at a good pace, so I felt very confident this time.
“The more we went, the more confident I got and then the job was done.
“I came a little bit wide today because there’s one horse that tired in front of me, so I had to come a little bit early.
“But I let him sit around the 400m, just push the button and he did everything by himself.
“It looks like he could (take the step forward in the Durban July). We’re going to see how many points he’s gonna get after this win, but obviously he’s in a very good shape.
“He loves the track, so I’ll ask the trainer but I think we have a ticket.”
Crawford, whose father Brett is based in Hong Kong, has also landed his first Grade 1 triumph with Star Major.
The young handler joins his father in training a winner of the Daily News 2000 and he could follow in his footsteps in the Durban July, with Brett having trained Winchester Mansion to victory in 2023.
“It’s very special. We’ve knuckled and we’ve grinded to get to Group 1. Nice to get the first Group 1 under the belt,” he said.
“Big thanks to my dad for letting me take over and giving me the chance.
“Big well done to Mickaelle and the whole team. It’s a massive team effort. I’m the head of everything but ultimately, I wouldn’t be able to do everything without the team that I’ve got around me.
“We always knew he (Star Major) was going to be a horse to come on from the KZN (KwaZulu-Natal) season and it’s nice to see that he’s just progressed since then.
“Very straightforward horse. He just goes about his business and handles himself really well.
“He looked keen today but when Mickaelle asked him to come back and switched off, he switched off beautifully and got the job done when he needed to.
“It looks like we’ve got a nice horse on our hands, so a lot to look forward to.”
One race earlier in the Grade 2 Lucky Fish Woolavington 2000 (2,000m), $8 short-priced favourite Wish List scraped home by a nose under Fortune to beat the mare Minogue.
Fortune said the three-year-old filly trained by Justin Snaith was still his choice of ride for the Durban July despite the close finish.
The former South Africa champion jockey has previously won once aboard Durban July favourite Note To Self, who subsequently finished third in the highlight race of the day.
“I’m not worried about the 2,200m. At the moment, I’m in her corner,” he said.
“She’s got a very close place in my heart. At the moment, she’s my pick. I’m riding her.
“He’s (Note To Self) got to convince me if he’s got to become my pick.” GOLD CIRCLE
Additional reporting by Sharon Zhang
