Holidays are enjoyable, but Manoel Nunes is definitely not dancing the samba right now, especially when they are enforced.
The Brazilian has again incurred the wrath of Stewards when he was handed yet another suspension for careless riding this week, and a hefty one too. The two-time Singapore champion jockey was outed for four meetings and slapped with a $10,000 fine for careless riding aboard Elite Star in a race they won on March 11.
Nunes scored on the Shane Baertschiger-trained galloper but caused runner-up Royal Ruler (Barend Vorster) to check 100m out.
Suspensions are like death and taxes to jockeys; they cannot escape it. But with 18 bans – all for careless riding bar one (one month and $25,000 fine) for his infamous return to scale underweight after winning aboard Falcon in 2015 - already meted out to Nunes in three years and three months of riding at Kranji, it is fair to say he has warmed the hot seat in the inquiry room a bit more than others.
A wide mix of emotions are going through Nunes’ head right now as he stays at home until the Singapore Guineas day on May 15, especially as he just scooped his first four-timer of this much tougher season only last Friday. Frustration is certainly one of them.
“Just when things were starting to look good, I get another suspension, and the double whammy is the $10,000 fine,” said Nunes whose previous run-in with racing officialdom saw him cop a double suspension (Schiltron and Best Jade) amounting to a six-meeting ban as recently as at the end of February.
“I felt it was harsh as Elite Star is not an easy horse to ride. He’s known to be a horse who needs to learn how to change his legs and that’s why Shane got me on him.
“On that day, he was drifting in but I did stop riding to correct him, and I felt the fault was made to look worse than it actually was. I thought I deserved only a warning, but anyway, I respect the Stewards’ decision.”
Nunes currently sits atop the log on 31 winners, only five clear of Vlad Duric. He is aware that is anything but a safe cushion in four meetings, but remained upbeat he would still be in with a strong shout when he returns.
“It’s come at the wrong time, especially now when I needed the wins. Four days may not be one month, but it’s still a long time,” said Nunes.
“The $10,000 fine will also hurt the pocket. One of the reasons I left Macau was the fines; the prizemoney went in one pocket and they went out the other as fines.
“For sure, I will lose some rides as this game is so competitive nowadays, but I’m glad Mark Walker has been a good supporter of mine. I love winning races and I will fight until the end.”
While it is clear that latest suspension has not dampened his determination to fight for a third title, he did sound a little gun-shy. Nunes used the example of a famous fellow countryman to illustrate his point about the fine line between will to win and safety.
“Everybody has a job to do, but suspensions can make a jockey become more of a thinker, take fewer risks,” said Nunes.
“Take Joao Moreira for example. In Hong Kong, he would have won the premiership at his first season if he had not been suspended so many times.
“I’m not comparing myself with Joao, far from it, but they do take away a bit of your competitive edge, that’s all. In saying this, I am always mindful of safety for my fellow jockeys and myself.
“Last year, if not for suspensions, I should have won my second title by a much bigger margin. This year is different, as I am not a runaway leader, and any more suspensions will definitely make it even harder.”
As Nunes gets plenty of time to mull over this conundrum – as well as more quality time with his visiting daughters Vittoria and Gabriella – the consummate professional in him has not lost sight of the main mission awaiting him when he dons his breeches again.
“Nova Strike is my Singapore Guineas ride. He ran very well (second) in the second Leg (Group 2 Singapore Three-Year-Old Classic over 1400m),” said Nunes.
“He’s only a small horse but he has a big heart and tries hard. He was unlucky in the first Leg (Group 3 Dester Singapore Three-Year-Old Sprint over 1200m) but bounced back in the second Leg.
“The winner Debt Collector was very impressive and the other horses like Magnum and Mr Scorsese will also be even better over the mile, but I have faith in my horse.”
The Group 1 Singapore Guineas (1600m) is the third and final Leg of the Singapore Three-Year-Old Challenge and will be run on May 15.
