Singapore SGD300,000 G1 Lion City Cup (1200m) may once again be in the crosshairs of trainer James Peters after veteran grey Grand Koonta lit up the Kranji Racecourse with an explosive sprinting display. The evergreen gelding’s performance capped another week of international results for China Horse Club whose Revivalist and Ringmaster saluted during the week in Australia while the Royal Ascot bound State of Rest was gutsy and game in the €300,000 G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup in Ireland on Sunday.
Grand Koonta finished a close third in the feature when favourite in 2021 and a near three length win in the SGD100,000 War Affair 2014 Stakes (1200m) over the weekend has rekindled aspirations to that the near eight-year-old may still deserve a tilt at the highest level.
“It’s all about race options for this horse. I don’t try him anymore on the Polytrack or over 1400m, we save him for the turf over 1200m and even if that means we have to spell him, so be it,” Peters told media post-race.
“[Grand Koonta] has a real good turn of foot but if you start your run too far out, he’ll tire, so [Manoel Nunes] sat there perfect, timed his run and won really well.”
In Ireland, a selection of Europe’s heavyweight weight-for-age performers descended on the Curragh for the Tattersalls Gold Cup, a long-standing prep race for the £700,000 G1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes – the feature weight-for age race over the Royal Ascot carnival.
Pre-race, most attention centred on State of Rest, who had won three G1s in three different countries since last being seen in his native Ireland, and fellow internationally proven star Lord North who was fronting following his dead heat win in the USD6,000,000 Dubai Turf. On the line State of Rest was beaten a neck and a neck into third but looks primed for his return to British racing next month.
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