Gareth Pepper, Singapore Turf Club
Nurshahril Nordin is a name we don’t hear very often but it was back in the news in a big way at Kranji on Sunday.
The four-kilo claiming apprentice jockey does not get as many opportunities as his fellow rookies, but from the way he drove Hongchen (NZ) (Fully Fledged) to a thrilling win in the opener, the $35,000 Class 5 race over 1100m, the nods for rides may go up a notch from now on.
Nurshahril, who had only two previous wins under the belt before Sunday’s, Tropical Forest and Real Hero, both for his master Alwin Tan in January and June respectively last year, was seen wielding the whip with greater vigour and effectiveness inside the last 100m.
Barnburgh Lad (Troy See) and Captain Classique (Nooresh Juglall) were slugging it out upon straightening, but it soon became clear neither would dispute for top honours when Mings Man (Zy Nor Azman) upstaged them, but it was Hongchen ($36) and Fast Jet (Oscar Chavez) who finished the best to run 1-2 with three-quarter of a length between them.
Mings Man stuck on well for third another three-quarter length away. The winning time was 1min 6.12secs for the 1100m on the Polytrack.
A seven-year-old by Fully Fledged, Hongchen, who was first prepared by Mok Zhan Lun and Bruce Marsh, was at his first start for Saimee Jumaat and was bringing up his fifth win for stakes earnings closing in on the $200,000 mark for the Phan Nee No 3 Stable.
Saimee said he obviously did not know the horse well, but from the videos he watched, he had a nice gut-feel what could do the trick, not to mention of Nurshahril whom he thought had improved a lot.
“I saw the horse was overracing a bit with the blinkers on, and that’s why I decided to drop the blinkers and put a crossover noseband on so the jockey can still control him,” said the former Singapore eight-time champion jockey who was at his second career win after Shoqeet last week.
“Nurshahril has improved a lot in his riding and he rides a lot of trackwork for me. I’ve already given him a few rides like Evil Speedo who ran third last Sunday.
“I told him to put this horse quite close to the speed and he’s followed the instructions and rode him very well.”
Formerly raced as Higher in New Zealand, Hongchen ran four times for the training partnership of Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman before his export to Singapore in 2014.