Classy galloper Cash Luck has been earmarked for three big race assignments in the upcoming months as trainer David Kok turns to his dependable warhorse.
While his last four trips to the winner’s circle have been thanks to some new additions to his stable (Castor and Star Jet won as juveniles while Bright General debuted in August), the Australian-bred gelding is a two-time feature race winner, most notably at last year’s Group 1 Panasonic Kranji Mile, and has been Kok’s flagship horse for the past 12 months.
Even a less-than-ideal performance in Tuesday’s barrier trials, where Cash Luck (who was one of eight horses from Kok’s yard involved in the morning hit-out) only managed to finish fifth behind Faretti despite his rating of 104 compared to the John O’Hara-trained galloper whose rating hovers at 60 points, did not unduly worry Kok.
“It was not bad considering he didn’t have any space to come out from the rails at the top of the straight (clocking 1min 2.19secs),” said the Singaporean handler. “He’s in good condition and he just needed a hit-out before next week’s Jumbo Jet Trophy.”
The Group 3 race over 1400m on September 7 is the first of three major missions the Bradbury six-year-old, who took out the Group 3 JBBA Moonbeam Vase (1800m) in April and has won eight times from 32 overall starts with over $860,000 in prizemoney earned, has been penciled in for.
He will then look to defend his Kranji Mile title in this year’s edition on October 5 before finishing his 2014 campaign with another bid at the Group 1 Raffles Cup (1800m) three weeks later.
“He’s still a very good horse and he has a chance of defending his crown but a lot also depends on what kind of field he faces. Three big races and that will be it for him,” said Kok, who is hoping his own disappointing season can be transformed with some positive results in the months ahead.
After the high of capturing his first Group 1 trophy last year while also saddling 37 winners (matching his 2010 best tally), it was always natural that it would be hard to maintain that level of performance but 2014 has been an uphill struggle.
His 10 winners this term is the lowest return Kok has managed since he branched out on his own in late 2009, when he managed 10 winners in the final four months.
“Thankfully I got one (Bright General saluted in a Maiden race over 1200m on Sunday) last week and it might have been two but we lost to a world-class jockey,” he said.
His runner Italian Job was thwarted by jockey Joao Moreira, aboard Laurie Laxon’s Huka Falls, in the main race of the afternoon meeting, the Jockey Club Of Turkey Trophy (1200m).
“Let’s hope I have better luck in the next few races,” said Kok, although his chances of getting on the scoreboard for this week look done and dusted after Voy, his sole runner this week, was a late scratching in Trial 7, the final practice on Tuesday.
