Cover image courtesy of Alexander Brothers Racing
South African brothers Gary and Dean Alexander have a pretty simple philosophy when it comes to racing.
They say you just need to keep on getting better and never think that your 'better' is your best.
That’s the plan they’re now working to as they establish one of Australia’s newest stables, Alexander Brothers Racing.
They may be among the newest Australian-based trainers on the block, only saddling up their first runner at Adelaide’s Morphettville Parks last month, Brazen Force (Brazen Beau), but the sibling duo out of Johannesburg’s Turffontein Racecourse, South Africa, are far from rookies.
That should have been evident just a fortnight later when Brazen Force, the former Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr gelding, won the Gary Radford OAM Memorial H. over 1950 metres, fittingly with fellow South African Barend Vorster in the saddle.
“It was good to get that win out of the way,’’ says Gary, who in 2000 was voted South African Racing Association trainer of the year with no less than 13 Group race wins in the season.
“It was good to get that win out of the way." - Gary Alexander
Together, the Alexander brothers have produced more than 100 Group and Listed races in South Africa but their family journey to that first win on Australian turf in the middle of a global pandemic may just have been the grittiest win in their racing world.
Settling in South Australia - Gary with wife Danica and children Sasha, 13, and Johnmarc, 10, and Dean with wife Vanessa and daughter Tayla, 19 - they will set up a large-scale training base at the Murray Bridge Racing Club’s Gifford Hill training complex about 80km from Morphettville.
Their goal is to build a team of 60-plus horses, which is a bit of a step back from the 80-horse operation they had in South Africa, which itself had scaled back from 160 in the 1990s.
Building a future
Gary, 62, and Dean, 58, say lifestyle and carving out more prosperous futures for their children than they were likely to have in South Africa is a priority and the “huge decision” to leave everything behind and move to Australia plays a fairly big role in settling on the 60-plus strong stable number.
Barend Vorster and Gary Alexander with Brazen Force | Image courtesy of Racing SA
There’s been some challenges for Alexander Brothers Racing, but both Gary and Dean are confident they’ve overcome the hurdles and are on pace to achieve their goals.
“We arrived in the middle of June and we quarantined for two weeks,’’ Dean says.
“We came out of quarantine at the beginning of July and basically we were out of quarantine for a week and a bit and then went into lockdown for a week.
“It was a step-by-step process of getting ourselves organised. Getting our (trainers') licences, getting our drivers' licences, getting our cars… it is a big thing to move and emigrate.
"It was a step-by-step process of getting ourselves organised. Getting our (trainers') licences, getting our drivers' licences, getting our cars… it is a big thing to move and emigrate." - Dean Alexander
“We had a lot of long-standing, good patrons that we had to leave behind. A lot of good horses. It was a tough decision…. It wasn’t an easy decision but also for our children going forward we believe they will have a better future long term here in Australia.’’
Gary’s long-held desire to train internationally, and the brothers’ shared dream of winning the G1 Melbourne Cup, along with an approach by Racing SA chief executive Nick Redin, all played a part in the move to Australia.
Gary says he applied for Hong Kong for a couple of years back in the 2000s. Then not long ago they got their licenses in Singapore but there were no boxes for them.
“And then Racing SA, Nick Redin and Vaughn Lynch, came out to see our set up in January 2020.
“You know, racing is very buoyant in Australia in general and it’s on the decline in South Africa unfortunately. It’s gone through a rough period, especially post COVID and it’s going to take a while for it to get back.
"Racing is very buoyant in Australia in general and it’s on the decline in South Africa unfortunately." - Gary Alexander
“I think it will get back but it is going to take a process and it’s going to take time and at our age we thought we either have to rebuild and restart in South Africa or go to Australia and take our chances. And that is basically it. Things started from there.’’
Shaping up for the sales season
The Alexander brothers are now determined to launch into strong buying in 2022 as the travel restrictions lift.
“Because with COVID we couldn’t travel around… the new horses, we can’t see them. All the horses we’ve ever bought in our career we’ve always viewed them,’’ says Gary.
Brazen Force as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“We decided to buy one or two on the online sales, so we did a bit of studying and it is very risky. So of course Brazen Force and Pig In Mud were the first two horses we purchased.
“With Brazen Force I went online and watched his races… I was just looking at him and how he was ridden. The first thing that attracted me was that he had blinkers on and he was pulling too hard in his last start.
“I thought there’s a horse that if the blinkers come off and he learns to settle and he’s looking for the ground, he might be a nice type.’’
"I thought there’s a horse (Brazen Force) that if the blinkers come off and he learns to settle and he’s looking for the ground, he might be a nice type."- Gary Alexander
Gary and Dean had planned to go to the New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale last week but, once again, had to make do with an online sale, fortunately with some strong bloodstock agent support on the ground in New Zealand.
They bought two horses there - Lot 40, a filly by Reliable Man (GB) out of General Nediym mare Avec Joie at a cost of NZ$50,000; and Lot 168, a colt by Belardo (Ire) out of Darci Brahma (NZ) mare Lady Linwood (NZ) for NZ$70,000 in partnership with John White Bloodstock.
Gallery: The Alexander brothers' New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale purchases
Dean explained that the pressure was on for Alexander Brothers Racing to get some young horses in the stable as they strive to meet their target numbers of 10 horses by December and 30 by June.
“It was really our last opportunity to get a 2-year-old. We went up to the Gold Coast Ready to Run and liked a few horses there but they were just a bit strong for us there,’’ he says.
“It’s going to be part of the plan in 2022, getting some young horses but also we’re in the market for tried horses because we have to get our stable to a level where it starts to become viable.
“You need the numbers to make the economics work as well. Otherwise, if you don’t have enough horses you can’t make a living.’’
“You need the numbers to make the economics work as well. Otherwise, if you don’t have enough horses you can’t make a living." - Dean Alexander
And Gary makes it clear when it comes to what the brothers are looking for.
“The next champion!’’
Dean elaborates: “I think you’ve got to go into sales looking for that horse that’s going to take you places. It’s always been our approach to look for those horses that are going to perform at a Group level."
A key to that success is to have happy horses, they say. And a they’re confident that the more relaxed surrounds of Gifford Hill at the Murray Bridge Racing Club, along with the purpose-built facilities and specialist training tracks, will deliver that.
“We’re of the thought that happy horses win races and that environment at Murray Bridge, I think will achieve that,’’ Dean says.
