Promising three-year-old Distinctive Darci is dropping back to 1000m this Sunday but trainer Mark Walker is confident that won’t deter his charge from still getting on with the job.
Dato Terry Lee’s sprinter was one of the late revelations last year, winning his last four starts in style, each time taking on a better grade of horses.
Distinctive Darci, who can go forward or race close to the pace, recorded his last win in a Class 3 event over 1200m, disposing rather comfortably of the handy dead-heating pair of Hermano Menor and Fortune Winner.
Just to give an idea how talented Walker’s charge is, Hermano Menor is now among three Steven Burridge horses taking on the international stage in Dubai while Fortune Winner ran away an emphatic winner on Monday.
While Walker remains cautious about the son of Darci Brahma’s (the New Zealand champion he trained himself) next assignment from a short break, he sounded bullish enough a fifth consecutive win is well within the realms of possibility.
“Distinctive Darci’s form is solid. He scored four in a row,” said the 2015 Singapore champion trainer, who opened his 2017 account with Unsurpassed at Day 2 on Monday.
“He’s been well prepared for Sunday, even if the 1000m is a little short, but he always races well when he is fresh. He had a little quiet trial last Thursday, and he’s fit and ready to go.
“He’s a progressive sort and has stepped it up every time he’s come out.”
The Singapore Three-Year-Old Challenge, which kicks off with the Group 3 Singapore Three-Year-Old Sprint (1200m) on March 26, was logically a race that Walker has long pencilled in for Distinctive Darci this term.
“It would be a natural progression to set him for the 3YO series, but I have to say there is a strong crop of three-year-olds this year,” said the Kiwi handler.
“The first Leg will be interesting. He should be able to get 1400m, if not the mile.”
With last winning partner Manoel Nunes currently suspended, Walker has given the ride to Alan Munro, who partnered the gelding once for a closing fourth to Lim’s Racer in the Group 2 Aushorse Golden Horseshoe (1200m) last July.
Walker hopes Distinctive Darci – one of 18 runners he is fielding this weekend - can keep up the winning momentum which was set in motion by his first winner Unsurpassed in Monday’s Class 5 race over 1100m. Ridden by Walker’s apprentice jockey Zawari Razali, the Exceed And Excel four-year-old was down in grade but has been displaying positive signs on the training tracks during the Christmas break.
“Unsurpassed won a nice race yesterday. Zawari rode him well, and they were too good,” he said.
“Kam’s Comet’s run in the main race (Benchmark 89 race over 1200m) was also enormous. He was drawn wide and came from well back to run third.”
The Dutch-owned Danroad five-year-old, who had Walker’s other apprentice jockey Syed Zainal up, seems to hit his peak at this time of the year. At last year’s New Year Cup meeting, he won a Class 2 race over 1200m and did win again two starts later but his form then went downhill before he bounced back to form last Monday.
