Trainer Steven Burridge may have taken over Luminiff Lad for only three starts, but he seems to have already found the key to unlocking his true potential – keep him on the fresh side.
The Australian conditioner was handed the Irish-bred four-year-old by Iffraaj after previous Kranji trainer Brian Dean left for Korea back in March. In two starts under the new stewardship, Luminiff Lad was, however, a shadow of the solid competitor who notched three wins between 1000m and 1200m for Dean, finishing among the also-rans on both occasions.
Unsure what the root cause of the form reversal was, Burridge decided to tip him out, and to his delight, he found out how 84 days on the outer can work wonders.
Tracking up behind Eatons Gold (Ng Choon Kiat) from the outset in the $60,000 Open Benchmark 67 Division 1 race over 1100m, Luminiff Lad looked the part when he straightened up to quickly gain the ascendancy, but the swoopers in the shape of stablemate Anonymous (John Sundradas) and Northern Boss (Vlad Duric) soon came stating their intentions for what was shaping up as a pulsating three-way go.
But under Beasley’s urgings, Luminiff Lad fought back to prevail by a neck from Anonymous for a stable quinella with Northern Boss hanging in there for third another neck away. The winning time was 1min 5.5secs for the 1100m on the Polytrack.
“He goes better as a fresh horse. I figured having him underdone as far as his training goes might work better for him,” said Burridge.
“He appears to race better when fresh even if I haven’t had him for long. You just can’t do a lot of work with him and that’s the way it’s going to be with him.
“The other horse (Anonymous) has also done a good job to run second.”
Burridge actually entered Luminiff Lad in Sunday’s highlight, the Korea Racing Authority Trophy (1200m), but decided to switch to that race in the end, with happy results. The Korean theme, it would seem, is, however, not entirely ruled out for the Premier Racing Stable galloper.
“I thought I’d throw him in (the KRA Trophy) but went for that race in the end. I will still look at that Korea Sprint in Korea (Seoul on September 11).
“Before today’s race, I told myself I would consider that Korean race if he wins, and now that he’s won, I guess I will be talking to the owners very soon.”
Formerly known as the Asia Challenge Cup, which Singapore sprinter El Padrino famously captured in 2014, the US$608,000 Korea Sprint (1200m) will be held alongside the US$855,000 Korea Cup (1800m) as part of a racing extravaganza launched by the KRA.
As for Beasley, who was already the winning jockey at the last two of Luminiff Lad’s previous three wins, he was marvelling at how Burridge had been able to resolve the gelding’s issue.
“He’s a funny little horse. His two wins with me were mirror images, and then he just went amiss,” said the Australian rider.
“Steve gave him a freshen-up and he seems to have come right again. Credit to Steve for keeping his races well-spaced and getting the best out of him.
“I’ve always thought he was a better horse than this class. I’m sure he will go higher than this level.”
With four wins in nine starts, Luminiff Lad has now brought his earnings past the $170,000 mark for the Premier Racing Stable.
