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Sporting an unusually bright green hood and matching brow roll to boot, Irish import Yulong Xiongyin did more than make a fashion statement by also showcasing his natural speed with a brilliant win on debut at Kranji on Friday night.
Trainer David Kok slapped on the two headgear pieces in a bid to get the speedy four-year-old son of Footstepsinthesand on his best behaviour at his first local outing, especially under the lights.
A one-time winner (1400m) at Dundalk on the Polytrack when then prepared by Mick Halford, the Yulong Stable’s designated trainer in Ireland, Yulong Xiongyin had been a nightmare to train, especially to his riders and handlers at the barrier gates.
After he arrived in Singapore last year in August, Kok thought he would have raced earlier, but his barrier antics took a long time to fix.
Months of patient schooling eventually paid off, but his Kranji handler was taking no chances by utilising any aid available to minimise any pre-race tantrums in the $60,000 Class 4 Premier speed dash over 1000m.
Kok need not have worried. Out like a shot, the chestnut gelding had only Enthuse (Amirul Ismadi) to compete with in the early speed department in the first furlong, but under Benny Woodworth’s expert handling, Yulong Xiongyin eventually gained the ascendancy without too much bother.
All the Malaysian jockey had to do from that point onwards was to point the $11 favourite in the right direction. Enthuse tried to turn the tables back on him upon straightening, but that initial speed battle must have taken the wind out of his sails a little.
Upfront, Yulong Xiongyin showed no signs of letting up as he held Enthuse off comfortably, hitting the line first with 1 ¾ lengths to spare with Katagas (Michael Rodd) third another half-length away. The winning time was 59.3 seconds for the 1000m on the Polytrack.
“I have a high opinion of this horse, but he’s been a real hothead behind the barriers,” said Kok.
“I think he’s been at barrier schooling six or seven times. A big thank you to the (Singapore Turf Club) starter John Pepe for the fantastic job he’s done on that horse.
“He had already won a race on Polytrack in Ireland, and it looks like he is a typical 1000m sprinter. I wanted to make sure he would not go mad tonight and that’s why I put the earmuffs and the browband on, he also needs a blanket to go in.
“I’d like to thank the owner for his support. That’s the first horse I train for them.”
Woodworth, who had a couple of times come within a whisker of handing the global Chinese outfit its first hurrah at Kranji with Yu Long Emperor, was finally sealing his first win in the green and white checked colours. After 16 months of presence in Singapore, the Yulong Stable eventually gained their first Kranji win from Yulong Xiong Hu (Michael Rodd) for Leslie Khoo on February 9.
“He was quite okay tonight considering he doesn’t like to be in the stalls too long. He only tried to do it once,” said Woodworth.
“The other horse went quite fast on the inside and as I was in no man’s land, I had to press on to get the rails as a guide.”