Poseidon
Singapore Turf Club
Trainer Cliff Brown enjoyed a good day at the office on Gold Cup day when he brought up a training double with New Zealand-breds Gilt Complex and Poseidon.
While Gold Cup castoff Gilt Complex was well among the leading hopes to take the Kranji Stakes C race over 2200m, Brown had been hoping for a place at best for the resuming Poseidon in the $125,000 Magnanimity Stakes, a Kranji Stakes A race over 1200m.
But the Gold Centre (by coincidence the same sire as Gilt Complex) five-year-old unleashed a blinding acceleration that upstaged the duelling pair of Hip Hip Hooray (Glen Boss) and Faaltless (John Powell) right at the last stride.
Ridden by Wong Chin Chuen, Poseidon, who has not claimed victory since March, was set on a lonesome path on the complete outside, and looked to still have the job ahead with Hip Hip Hooray finally letting down after taking a long time to warm up to the task outside the resilient Faaltless.
But the leading apprentice jockey pulled out all the stops, pushing with all the might that he has wonderfully demonstrated all year, with Poseidon sprouting wings late to just gain the verdict by a short head from Hip Hip Hooray, who nutted out Faaltless by the same margin for second. The winning time was 1min 9.94secs for the 1200m on the Long Course.
"The horse settled nicely for me at the back all the way into the home straight. Once he found daylight, he responded very well to my riding," said Wong.
"I could tell I had a chance at the 200m and I just kept pushing and he got there right on the line."
Brown heaped praise on Wong for his determination to win on the Olympian Stable-owned gelding.
"CC is a wonderful rider. He works hard and deserves all the success coming his way," said the Australian trainer.
"The horse fit, and I told him if they go hard in front, he will give it a last shot. I know the horse has a nice turn of foot, and he produced it at the right time to just get there."
Poseidon has now racked up a handy record of six wins and nine placings from 21 starts for prizemoney close to the $410,000 mark for the Olympian Stable.
While Gold Cup castoff Gilt Complex was well among the leading hopes to take the Kranji Stakes C race over 2200m, Brown had been hoping for a place at best for the resuming Poseidon in the $125,000 Magnanimity Stakes, a Kranji Stakes A race over 1200m.
But the Gold Centre (by coincidence the same sire as Gilt Complex) five-year-old unleashed a blinding acceleration that upstaged the duelling pair of Hip Hip Hooray (Glen Boss) and Faaltless (John Powell) right at the last stride.
Ridden by Wong Chin Chuen, Poseidon, who has not claimed victory since March, was set on a lonesome path on the complete outside, and looked to still have the job ahead with Hip Hip Hooray finally letting down after taking a long time to warm up to the task outside the resilient Faaltless.
But the leading apprentice jockey pulled out all the stops, pushing with all the might that he has wonderfully demonstrated all year, with Poseidon sprouting wings late to just gain the verdict by a short head from Hip Hip Hooray, who nutted out Faaltless by the same margin for second. The winning time was 1min 9.94secs for the 1200m on the Long Course.
"The horse settled nicely for me at the back all the way into the home straight. Once he found daylight, he responded very well to my riding," said Wong.
"I could tell I had a chance at the 200m and I just kept pushing and he got there right on the line."
Brown heaped praise on Wong for his determination to win on the Olympian Stable-owned gelding.
"CC is a wonderful rider. He works hard and deserves all the success coming his way," said the Australian trainer.
"The horse fit, and I told him if they go hard in front, he will give it a last shot. I know the horse has a nice turn of foot, and he produced it at the right time to just get there."
Poseidon has now racked up a handy record of six wins and nine placings from 21 starts for prizemoney close to the $410,000 mark for the Olympian Stable.