Lady’s first courtesy of Saifudin’s expert hands
Veteran jockey Saifudin Ismail dug deep into his wealth of experience to lift Caribbean Lady (Your Song) first across the line yesterday, but humbly said he was just going with the flow regarding the crucial moments he had to think on his feet during the race.
The 53-year-old Malaysian arguably won the Kranji Stakes C race over 1600 metres on Polytrack in the middle sections when, instead of pressing on from his early urgings on the six-year-old, he surprisingly throttled the motor down into idle mode.
“I actually wanted to cut to the fence in the back straight, but we couldn’t get in,” said Saifudin.
“So, I decided to stay there one-off the rails, but at the same time, I slowed down the pace in order to save as much energy as possible.
“It’s only from the second corner at the 800 metres that I started to give her more rein.”
Interestingly, Saifudin, who is usually known for his vigorous style, was seen coaxing Caribbean Lady to the line without the persuader, bar the last few strides.
“At the 300 metres, I couldn’t pull the whip as the other horse was too close, and when I rode her hands and heels, I noticed that she was responding nicely,” he said.
“So, I just kept pushing and pushing, and it’s only in the last 100 metres that I could pull the whip.”
As the camera flashed, a nose split Caribbean Lady from Pennywise (Pure Prize) who was returning to his pet Polytrack. King Louis (Medaglia D’Oro) ran third another two and three-quarter lengths away. The winning time was 1min 38.62secs for the Polytrack mile.
In-form Logan pops Champagne with double
Donna Logan kept up her rich vein of form courtesy of a double provided by two outsiders.
Reverting to his preferred frontrunning tactics, one of the stable favourites The Big Easy (Super Easy) turned back the clock with a return to the winner’s enclosure after more than two years in the Class 4 Division 1 race over 1100 metres before Champagne Finale (All Too Hard) also dictated terms four events later to go all the way in the Class 4 race over 1600 metres.
“We need winners in this game. I’m very pleased with the double,” said Logan.
“The Big Easy had problems and had to undergo surgery. He was right up in the weights, but there’s a huge difference between Class 3 and Class 4.
“We weren’t super confident because of his barrier (11), but we knew there might be a speed duel, and we went in with Plan A and Plan B, but Iskandar (Rosman) rode him brilliantly by going forward.
“As for Champagne Finale, when the rain came, we know he likes it.”
Rhapsody scores for Galahad and Screen Hero
Wind Rhapsody (Screen Hero) is no world-beater but his maiden Kranji win at his 11th start yesterday adds another winning tick to his owner Galahad Racing Stable and their resident stallion Screen Hero (Grass Wonder).
A winner of the Japan Cup (Gr 1, 2400m) as a longshot in 2008, Screen Hero is probably better known for his post-racing deeds in the barn, being the sire of Japanese champion Maurice.
Owner Mrs Teruyo Tsukawaki retained her shares in Screen Hero when he was retired to stud in 2010. When she decided to support fellow Japanese Hideyuki Takaoka in Singapore in 2017, she needed not look too far afield to find horses to fill her stable – all five up to now have been by Screen Hero.
Takaoka was certainly pleased he had saddled another Screen Hero winner for Tsukawaki, but at the same time realistic in his assessment of the four-year-old from a future perspective.
“It’s nice to have another winner for the Galahad Racing Stable,” said Takaoka.
“Wind Rhapsody is a full brother to Hero In The Wind. He’s been showing some improvement lately.
“But I don’t think he’ll get up to Class 2 or 3 like Dance In The Wind or Wind Trail who are probably the best horses they sent to me. He may get up to Class 4 one day.”