He quotes The Godfather and has a private jet. Some say he wields too much power in Victorian racing

Barely five minutes into a Racing Victoria phone conference, billionaire racehorse owner Jonathan Munz ran out of patience.

Munz – who on Friday agreed to join the Melbourne Racing Club board as vice chairman – had dialled in from a holiday in France and could no longer tolerate hearing the industry’s new CEO Andrew Jones explain his vision for the future.

Jones had been hired as an agent of change in July 2022 and had quickly driven an agenda to lure young fans back to the sport.

In February the next year, he announced plans to reorder the time-honoured spring racing calendar, added a 10th race to Saturday meetings to boost wagering, and was forecasting millions of dollars in prizemoney cuts.

There were even suggestions that Jones and his executive team of Ben Amarfio and Matt Welsh would move the Melbourne Cup to December.

Munz, a wealthy breeder, owner and racing traditionalist, could not stomach the ideas. To him, none of the changes made sense.

But there are two versions of what happened next as anxious stakeholders, the Racing Victoria executive team and agitated board members argued their points of view.

Some with knowledge of the virtual meeting say Munz’s anger came thundering down the phone. One critic of Munz told his masthead the businessman had “a massive tantrum … yelling and abusing members of the board”.

“His behaviour was appalling,” the source said. “There were personal attacks. He played the man.”

Others disagreed. They say Munz called the meeting in the first place, acting on behalf of a “participation alliance”, hoping Jones and the Racing Victoria board would “listen to reason” and dial back their ideas.

“But it became apparent they weren’t listening to anything we [the stakeholders] were saying,” an insider said.

“They were trying to provoke and bait Munz, to get a rise out of him. He was reasonably blunt but professional and polite. They were rude to him, not the other way around.”

The tone of the phone call might be disputed, but there is no doubting what happened next: Munz went on a crusade to get rid of Jones.

He privately told Jones that he was coming for his job, and publicly called for him to be sacked.

Less than 12 months later, Jones was gone.

The Age spoke to more than 20 people involved in various levels of racing across several months to understand Munz and his powerful influence on Victorian racing. Some declined to comment, others requested to remain anonymous to speak more freely. Munz and Jones both declined to be interviewed for this story.

How Munz makes things happen

Munz moved a step closer to racing’s coalface on Friday when he agreed to join the Melbourne Racing Club board as vice chairman, filling a three-year casual vacancy created by the resignation of John Kanga, the former chairman who stood down on the eve of the Caulfield Cup carnival. Munz will remain as Thoroughbred Racehorse Owners’ Association chairman.

In the past, Munz has used his position as chairman of the association to file a motion for an emergency general meeting to spill the Racing Victoria board.

In February last year, he called for five directors to be removed because they wouldn’t sack Jones.

The motion was lost after a flurry of last-minute phone calls between racing clubs and Racing Minister Anthony Carbines’ office but ultimately, it had the desired effect.

Sensing he had lost the support of the board, Jones resigned in April 2024. Amarfio and Welsh followed him out the door.

“The board should have moved against him after the EGM because he lost; he didn’t get the votes,” a critic of Munz said.

“But they didn’t. He won the power struggle, and then he took control of the Melbourne Racing Club.”

Munz formed an alliance with Kanga and, according to a supporter, helped orchestrate a plan in August last year to overthrow the MRC board.

“He wields too much power,” said one concerned source, claiming the Racing Victoria constitution allows individuals to build voting blocs by installing allies in positions of power. “It’s an integrity issue for the industry.

“In my view, it can only stop by the government – and it would have to be bipartisan – saying we don’t think this constitution is fit for purpose any more, and we are going to change it.

“Name one regulatory body where those who are regulated can overthrow the regulator. It’s bizarre.”

When Carbines was approached for comment, a Victorian government spokesperson said: “Racing Victoria is an independent company established under the Corporations Act, and its constitution is a matter for its members.”

Munz’s five-point plan

Munz’s vision for the future of racing in Victoria, as outlined in a series of press releases on the Thoroughbred Racehorse Owners’ Association website, has taken shape in the past year.

He called for prizemoney for the All-Star Mile to be slashed. Tick.

He demanded Racing Victoria cut $10 million of “spending wastage” and slash another $10 million from its integrated media businesses, such as Racing.com. Tick and tick.

He insisted that prizemoney should not be cut, even following the alarming drop in wagering after the COVID-19 sugar hit. Tick.

He called for regular stakeholder meetings at Racing Victoria to ensure all parties were across any proposed changes – because “consultation means you make less mistakes”. Tick.

He said Melbourne Racing Club had to fix its spring calendar. He wanted the Thousand Guineas moved back to Caulfield Cup week for a start. Tick.

He called for the group 1 Orr Stakes and a new three-year-old fillies race to be staged at Caulfield on the Saturday after Melbourne Cup week. Tick and tick.

All these things, according to those who side with Munz, were for the betterment of the industry.

But not according to one detractor, who said it simply proved that Munz was in control.

“The only reason he’s got any power at all is because he’s the chairman of TROA and meant to be representing 70,000 owners who he never talks to,” the source said.

“Most of them wouldn’t even know they are members of TROA. This is an organisation that advertises its annual general meeting by putting a very small ad beside the death notices in the Herald Sun. ”

When asked if Munz had too much influence, a Racing Victoria spokesperson said it had strengthened engagement by creating a racing forum for stakeholders under the leadership of chief executive Aaron Morrison.

“These forums have proven to be valuable platforms for transparent, collaborative dialogue on key industry matters, including race dates and prizemoney decisions which remain the responsibility of the independent RV board,” the spokesperson said.

“RV can’t always agree with every stakeholder’s views and there are plenty of times where we have not.”

Victoria’s answer to V’Landys

Munz is considered the most powerful and influential person in Victorian Racing. This state’s answer to NSW supremo Peter V’Landys, who wields immense power as that state’s racing CEO and also chairs the NRL.

Munz made his fortune working alongside his father, Philip, building an Australian plumbing supplies business into a global brand called Reliance Worldwide Corporation – an organisation that manufactured and supplied products for the plumbing industry, including pipes, valves and push-to-connect (PTC) fittings.

They floated the business in 2016, selling their shares for more than $1 billion by February 2019. Munz stepped down from the board that year.

Apart from thoroughbreds, Munz has a private jet and is a movie fanatic.

He has been known to drop lines from favourite films such as The Godfather into conversations and had a horse named Excommunicado, a term taken from the John Wick movies, starring Keanu Reeves.

“He’s always introducing himself as a billionaire,” one source said.

But rather than direct traffic from a position of power as V’Landys does, until Friday Munz operated behind the scenes.

While some paint him as a dark overlord or puppet master, others describe him as one of few people prepared to stand up for what is right.

He is either feared or respected for his ability to get things done.

“He has the intellect and ability to convince people on the right way to go,” a source aligned with Munz said.

But there is another side to Munz. He likes it known that he “can’t be intimidated, can’t be bought and that no one can leverage him”, the same industry source said.

If you can’t be convinced to join a Munz alliance, don’t get in his way.

“He will play the man if anyone gets in the way,” they added.

“More than that, he’ll shirtfront people if treated unfairly.”

Many have been critical of Munz for having too much to say from behind the scenes. If he wants to have an impact, they say, why doesn’t he join the Racing Victoria board?

That position shifted slightly with his MRC board appointment.

A source close to Munz says that he “likes to have a positive influence in the background because it allows him to stay separate and be independent”.

But an opponent said Munz once told an RV meeting that nobody should be on their board unless they were worth $40 million because then they could not be “got at”.

A Munz insider said that quote was taken out of context. He said Munz believed that RV board members had to have the correct qualifications – a background in commerce or racing – the right intentions and independence, so they could make decisions without being “got at”.

He was suspicious of people beholden to a free lunch in a race club committee room, or dependent on a director’s annual fee. Racing Victoria directors are paid an annual fee of about $100,000, while race club directors are honorary positions.

His role as Thoroughbred Racehorse Owners’ Association chairman gives him leverage because the association is a shareholder of the regulatory body and has to be informed and consulted as part of the regular racing forums.

The Caulfield connection

Munz toured the Melbourne Racing Club’s new $160 million facilities with Kanga in April last year.

Munz called the development “an insane waste of money”.

He helped Kanga form a strategy to topple the board and become chairman.

Nine months later, Munz’s associate Tanya Fullarton – who worked alongside him on the Thoroughbred Racehorse Owners’ Association board – was named the MRC’s chief operating officer at the same time Tom Reilly was sacked as CEO. On Friday, she was appointed the club’s new full-time CEO.

The Age reported in June that another Munz employee, Kenneth Neff, the manager of his Mornington training facility, was hired by Kanga on a $25,000-a-month contract to help prepare the club’s racing tracks.

Munz sat in on meetings between the MRC and Mount Scopus College before an agreement was reached in December last year to sell 7.5 hectares of land at Caulfield Racecourse to the Jewish private school to build a new campus.

A source aligned with Munz claimed the deal was in danger of falling over before he stepped in. The MRC said the Mount Scopus land deal was all completed through the correct channels.

The source said Munz, a former Mount Scopus student, saw the proposed sale as mutually beneficial.

The Age revealed that Munz also took part in merger talks between the MRC and VRC in February this year when he hosted Kanga and VRC chairman Neil Wilson at his Toorak mansion.

Talks focused on bringing Flemington and Caulfield racetracks under one administration, and undoing 150 years of tradition by creating a super club that would oversee both the Melbourne and Caulfield cups.

Sources told The Age that proposed merger would have resulted in the two clubs operating under the VRC banner, with a combined board, while Wilson would act as temporary chairman before handing over to Kanga after 12 months.

Such an entity would also have created a strong voting block and a powerful voice at the Racing Victoria table.

Results are vital

Munz is rarely seen at the races, preferring to watch from his Toorak mansion.

There is no guarantee that he will be at Flemington on Saturday to watch his filly, Getta Good Feeling, in the Wakeful Stakes or his superstar, Giga Kick, the following week in the VRC Champions Sprint.

He owns about 80 broodmares in NSW and New Zealand, runs a private training facility at Mornington called Pinecliff and races horses with several trainers across the state, including former Sydneysider Grahame Begg, Danny O’Brien and Clayton Douglas.

“He lets you do your own thing as long as you can get results for him, which is vital,” Begg told this masthead last year.

“He’s a big investor in the industry, a massive investor in the industry. People don’t realise the amount of money he puts into it.

“So he likes to get results. But he is pretty meticulous with what he does. It has never been an issue to train for him.”

Munz has also ventured into political fields. The Age revealed in February 2023 that Munz’s company, GSA Capital, had paid $250,000 in membership fees to the short-lived Victorians Party, which folded two months before the November 2022 state elections.

A Victorians Party spokesperson said the payment was publicly declared and permitted under the Victorian Electoral Act.

The Age also reported that Munz was approached by Mitch Catlin – the then-chief of staff of former opposition leader Matthew Guy – in 2022 to make more than $100,000 in payments to Catlin’s private marketing business.

Munz declined to make the payments. Catlin quit his position as chief of staff to Guy in August 2022.

There are two perceptions of Munz’s views.

“He believes that owners and breeders put all the money in, while the rest are parasites,” a critic said. “He thinks the clubs are just social clubs. He has no respect for wagering input.”

But a supporter said Munz always fought for causes he believed would improve the industry.

“People go to him with problems because there is no one else to fix them,” the source said.

In 2022, he took on V’Landys over NSW’s refusal to pay other states’ licensed strappers their bonuses.

“In my view, it is fundamentally improper and unfair,” Munz told the AFR. “You can’t treat a worker differently for doing the same work in NSW, just because they live in Victoria.”

After his intervention, the strapper for his horse, Giga Kick, was paid $122,000 for their share of winning The Everest.

As ever, Munz got results.

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