Valentino has company for work
Hong Kong Mile (HK-G1) hopeful VALENTINO (Valanour [Ire]) worked about six furlongs on
the turf on Thursday in the company of Phoenix Reach (Ire) (Alhaarth) and Powerscourt
(GB) (Sadler’s Wells), going the last
quarter in :23. However the five-year-old’s trainer, Alain de Royer Dupre, is concerned that
his charge has not really
settled into his new surroundings and might not be ready for Sunday’s race at
Sha Tin Racecourse.
“It’s all a bit new for him, the travel and
it’s very different here from home,” he said. “He’s not really been as relaxed as I would
have liked, so we’ll have to see how he goes.”
Valentino captured his past two starts, both Group 3s in France.
Aidan O’Brien’s Mile hope, ANTONIUS PIUS (Danzig), continued his quiet
build up to Sunday with another easy canter on the all weather track. Despite
his long season and seven consecutive Group/Grade 1 races between May and October, the
sophomore colt looks well and assistant trainer Pat Keating is hopeful that the
bay can hold his form.
“Obviously he is a class horse and he has learned
plenty this year,” jockey Jamie Spencer said. “I’m just hoping his class puts him in the finish.”
Antonius Pius scored in last year’s Railway S. (Ire-G2) and enters Sunday’s
Hong Kong Mile off a troubled runner-up finish from the Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1).
Japanese champion sprinter DURANDAL (Sunday Silence), back-to-back winner of
the Mile Championship (Jpn-G1), looked well on Thursday,
galloping strongly on the dirt track to come home in :22.6.
“I am happy with him,” trainer Masahiro Sakaguchi said. “The interval between
Mile Championship and this race is less than a month so I told his rider not to
work him too hard in today’s workout. That was very good.”
TELEGNOSIS (Tony Bin), a half-length winner of the Mainichi Okan (Jpn-G2) in
October, worked in :22
for his final quarter on the dirt.
Hong Kong trainer David Oughton feels his Mile contender, FIGURES (Maroof),
will be up against it on Sunday. The five-year-old bay, formerly known as
Marcurous, won the Champions Mile (HK-G1) at Sha Tin in early May.
“He had a great year last year, winning five and finishing with that win in
the Champions Mile,” Oughton said. “He is a very tough little Kiwi horse who really adapted
to Hong Kong. He never impresses in his work but he keeps pulling out extra in
his races. My concern, though, is whether he is really up to international
class. I’m just not sure. He certainly deserves to be there on what he has
achieved, but I think the Japanese horse and Grand Zulu
(Grand Lodge) are very good.”