Talented sprinter Castor looks primed for a third-up kill when he steps out in a Class 3 over 1200 metres at Kranji on Friday.
Castor has improved in his two runs so far this campaign and should be at peak fitness, having won two of his three previous third up attempts and placing at the other.
The return to the turf is somewhat of a question mark but he has placed at three of his five previous attempts and as the highest rated runner in this field on weight adjusted Timeform figures, his ability could be enough to get him home.
Jockey Troy See knows Castor well having ridden him six 16 times, winning four of them and placing at 50 per cent.One box Castor hasn’t ticked is a win at 1200m but he has placed at the trip four times - two of those coming at Group level as a youngster – and his close last-start second after covering ground showed he can run the trip right out.
Von Krumm has been out of the placings of late but he continues to race well and hasn’t been far away at any of his recent outings.He looked likely to figure in the finish at this track and distance last start but was held up on the turn and raced without a lot of room to the line so the effort to finish a 2.6 length fourth to Viviano was better than it appears.
All four of his career wins have come at this distance and jockey John Powell should have options from gate seven.Sun Pioneer scored a well-deserved win on the all weather last time after a string of good performances.
He has never won at 1200m but has placed at two of three attempts and switches to the turf, having placed at all three previous attempts.He also goes up to class 3 company today but his last effort was encouraging when he covered some ground and wanted to hang in but still proved too good in winning by a length so if his manners are a little better today he can take the step up.
First-up specialist Risky Rockefeller has to go into the numbers .He has raced up to a mile but is unbeaten in three fresh runs and has won three of four outings at 1200 metres so expect he will be wound up for a big return.
He is lightly-raced for a five year-old with just seven runs under his belt but with three wins and two placings he could be capable of making further progress.The well-performed Justice Day is due a touch of luck and could be a big improver today.
His form since arriving in Singapore looks disappointing on paper but nothing has gone right, including at his latest start when he failed to beat a runner home but was held up badly in the straight, forcing his rider to sit up.He was a talent when trained in the UK and raced in some of Europe’s best sprints, highlighted by a third placing in the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes back in 2013 and placing three times in Group company along with a win in the Listed Albert Bartlett Stakes at Ascot as a three-year-old.
As such he has some strong Timeform ratings on his record so the ability is there if he can put it all together.
