Latest news with #Four-Year-OldSprintChampionship
New Paper
6 days ago
- Sport
- New Paper
Getting up to Southern Speed
Kuala Lumpur racing fans are in for 13 races, including three features - the Four-Year-Old Sprint Championship, the Charity Cup and the Korea Racing Authority Trophy. If anything, the programme on offer says it is worth the trek to the Selangor Turf Club in Sungai Besi on June 15. A pity if you cannot make it as there are several exciting races on the card. And, as a sort of preview, some of the runners with assignments on the undercard were out strutting their stuff on the training track on the morning of June 11. Impressive among them were the quartet of Southern Speed, Lim's Fuji, Written Towin and Pacific Snoopy. All came away with flying colours. Especially Southern Speed. Entered in Race 3, the Richard Lim-trained-and-owned galloper worked like a winner, clocking a smart time of 38.8sec for the 600m trip. That workout told us that he is holding that last-start winning form. Flashback to June 1 and Southern Speed put up a dogged front-running show, leading from the get-go to hold off Healthy Baby. He took the race by the narrowest of margins - a nose. It was his fourth win and his first at his new home up north. Although already a seven-year-old, this son of I Am Invincible still manages to reinvent himself as a lion when on a racetrack. Yes, he looks good for back-to-back wins and, with winning jockey Troy See retaining the ride, Southern Speed looks like a good one to get the ball rolling early on June 15. Although Lim's Fuji was not out to get into any record books, he tossed in a good workout when clocking 41.2sec for the 600m. A one-time winner at Kranji when under the tutelage of Daniel Meagher, the Foxwedge six-year-old is still looking to break through for a first Malaysian victory. Now with Lawson Moy, he has a second-place finish to his name. That was in a race on March 9 when he went down by three parts of a length to Red Sun. His form then seemed to take a dip but his connections would have been pleased with his last-start effort when third to Pacific Sonic over the 1,200m. Moy has entered him for a 1,700m race on June 15. It will be his first attempt over the trip but given the fact that he likes to come off the pace in his races, the longer trip might be just what he wants. So hang around for Race 13. It might be worth your while. Earlier on June 15, in the 11th event on the day, mark down Pacific Snoopy as a mare to follow. She worked up a storm on the training track, clocking a swift 37.5sec for the 600m. From trainer David Kok's yard, the Hellbent five-year-old showed a return to form when running third to Paletas at her last start on May 25. Ridden by Oscar Chavez, she did not have any luck in the running and was obliged to race wide for most of the 1,150m trip. A Malaysian winner over the 1,020m on March 1, she has to negotiate the 1,400m on June 15, which should not pose any problems as she has won over the trip. That was at Kranji on Jan 20, 2024 when ridden by Vlad Duric, she came off fourth spot at the top of the Kranji straight to beat Ocean Jupiter by half a length. She is looking for her third career win and with star jockey Wong Chin Chuen flying in from his Seoul base for the ride, she will have loads of pals on and off course. On current form, both horse and rider could - by the end of the day's racing - seal those friendships. Then, and also from the training track, there was that 39.2sec run turned in by Written Towin. From the stables of Nick Selvan, the son of Written By will trot to the start in Race 5. It is another one of those sharp sprints over 1,100m and, going on his previous showings - especially when racing at Kranji - the trip should be right up his alley. Now a four-year-old, Written Towin has been getting close to breaking through for his second success and his first Malaysian victory. So far, and although he has tossed in a second-place finish and three fourth-placed efforts, the win has been elusive - not quite a reflection of his name. To his credit, Written Towin won a trial on May 20. That was over the 1,000m. His last start on May 25, when he finished a well-beaten sixth to Surrey Hills, was over the 1,200m. Selvan will be hoping the drop back in trip to the 1,100m will bring out the best in the sprinter. brian@
New Paper
10-06-2025
- Sport
- New Paper
Eruption ready to explode
Racegoers at Sungai Besi should be in for a treat when the Four-Year-Old Sprint Championship comes up on June 15. Invariably, there will be a bully in the pack, as it has often been the case when such aged series are contested. This year, the big boy in this feature over the 1,200m event appears to be Antipodean. With a rating of 103 and 10 wins from 15 outings - that last one coming on April 5 - Antipodean should start as the logical favourite in the showcase event. But the son of Derryn, who has recorded nine of his wins for Simon Dunderdale and only one for his current trainer, Tiang Kim Choi, might have his work cut out. Emerging from the training track on the morning of June 10, a couple of runners threw down the gauntlet. They could be the ones out to spoil the party for Antipodean. In particular, take note of Eruption and Big Union. Sure, they are both considered "lesser lights" on the big stage but, if allowed to throw in some punches, they both could do damage. Eruption would have gone into the notebooks of many at trackside when he ran the 600m in 37.6sec, while Big Union did not put a hoof wrong when disposing of that same trip in an easy 40.6sec. And, drawing a line through their recent showing in races, both have legitimate chances in that big race for four-year-olds. Eruption boasts a stellar record for the first half of the 2025 season. He won a 1,400m race on Jan 26 and he was again successful over that same trip on April 27. Last time on May 18, when sent away as the raging favourite, the son of Xtravagant found one to beat in Pacific Warrior, who took the honours when winning by half a length. Eruption has since trained on and, while the 1,200m might seem a tad short, his style of racing of staying close to the lead should see him involved in the finish. Yes, Antipodean does seem like he is the one to beat. But, should the Lawson Moy-trained Eruption explode over the final furlong, we might just see fireworks. As for Big Union, he is a huge chance in the contest coming up. Indeed and right now, he must seem like gold dust to his trainer Jerome Tan and the Cat Racing Stable. Big Union has been off the board just four times in his 16 outings at Kranji and now at the Selangor Turf Club. Sure, he has yet to knock home a win in all of his six starts in Malaysia - but he has not been left stranded in any of those races. Last time - on June 1 - and in a "high class" event, he went down fighting to Pacific Victory. A run earlier, on May 18, he ran fourth to the very exciting Pacific Vampire in a Supreme race over the 1,100m. The son of Zoustar will enjoy the short and sharp 1,200m he has to cover on June 15, as three of his five career wins at Kranji were over this same trip. He will give his rivals in the big sprint something to think about. So, keep him in your calculations. Outside of that feature event, two runners entered for the Class 4 sprint over the 1,100m were also put through their paces on the training track. They were War Dragon and Cheerful Baby. War Dragon clocked a flashy 37.6sec for the 600m while Cheerful Baby went over that same trip in 38.2sec. Forget the fact that War Dragon is a 10-year-old going on 11. The son of Battle Paint still believes he is one of the young crowd and, when in the mood, he can still raise a pretty neat gallop. We saw it three starts back on Feb 23 when he ran a half-length second to Legend Ninety Two. It has been a long while since War Dragon, who is also prepared by Moy, last won a race but, on the strength of his work, he might be a good one to toss into those novelty bets. As for Cheerful Baby, another Tan ward, he has been sparingly raced and the assignment coming up will be his second in 2025. However, he has been to three trials and his last one on June 4 saw him finish third behind the winner Kim Legend. His claim to fame must be the time he put together four wins in a row when racing at Kranji. The son of Brazen Beau is not going to do that any time soon but, given his work on the training track, he could, in his next few runs, be capable of bringing home his first Malaysian pay cheque. brian@
