Moor quietly confident about Pacific Emperor

Daniel Moor is happy to be sitting atop Pacific Emperor in the $150,000 Group 2 Stewards’ Cup (1,600m) on June 30.

The Australian jockey has already ridden the Caravaggio four-year-old twice and, though not winning, felt he should be in with a better shout against his own age group.

“No race is ever easy. But I think he’ll be better suited by this race as far as his weight goes,” said Moor.

“He was not suited by the weight scale in open age in the Kranji Mile, but he still ran a good race behind Lim’s Kosciuszko.

“It’s good to see him back against his own age group.”

Moor was at his second ride on the David Kok-trained galloper in the Group 1 Kranji Mile (1,600m) on May 18 when they did loom up with a cheeky run in the home straight.

After a ground-saving run on the rail, he pulled out all the stops in his bold bid to reel in Singapore kingpin Lim’s Kosciuszko at level weights, but faltered late to run fifth, only four lengths away.

To Moor, it was a significant improvement from his seventh place to the same horse in the Group 2 EW Barker Trophy (1,400m) one month earlier on April 21.

The handicap conditions of the feature race should have brought him closer, but the Group 1-winning jockey said the wide alley (10) did not help his cause.

“In the Barker, he had a horror draw in barrier No. 10. I didn’t want to tax him up on the speed, and rode him for luck,” said Moor.

“But when you ride a horse negative, you will always rely on luck. He did not have a great deal of it, and the Barker was one of the strongest races we’ve ever had.”

This time, he is among his peers even if the likes of Lim’s Saltoro, Bestseller and Makin still make for stiff opposition.

He has limited exposed form against them, though he was soundly beaten by Bestseller in the Group 3 Committee’s Prize (1,600m) on March 9.

The last of his six wins, in the Group 3 Merlion Trophy (1,200m) on Oct 28, 2023 is starting to date, but Moor said his will to win and soft barrier draw put him in good stead for a forward showing this time.

“He’s such a genuine horse. You’d be hard pressed to find another horse who tries harder,” he said.

“He’s not a big horse by any stretch of the imagination, but he’s a well-put together quality horse.

“I’ve been doing most of his work in the six weeks he had a break. He’s had a nice freshen-up and is in good shape.

“Barrier No. 2 in a big race like this can only be a good thing. He can relax in the right position.

“Lim’s Saltoro from gate No. 1 will also give us a good horse to tack on and give us a bit more of a chance.

“Bestseller, Makin, Lightning Strike who are all on a Derby trail, are all good horses. Aniki will make sure there is a genuine pace.

“What we don’t need is a dawdling place like in that four-horse race won by Ghalib the other day. It should be a competitive race.”

Pacific Emperor trialled in a small field of four on June 25, taking it easy in third before improving a touch closer late to finish third within less than two lengths off the leader and eventual winner Bravo Kid (Saifudin Ismail).

“He’s done a bit of racing this prep. So, we didn’t want to give him a taxing run that morning,” said Moor.

“We gave him a bit of a blowout late to bring his fitness levels back up. I was very happy with his trial.”

Whether natural progression means that the ultimate prize, the Group 1 Singapore Derby (2,000m) on July 21 is his next target, Moor says why not.

“The Derby is a reasonable option. We will take each run week to week,” he said.

“At this stage, everything is on the table, nothing is off the table. We’ll have to see how he performs in the Stewards’ Cup, but I couldn’t see why he wouldn’t run.”

manyan@sph.com.sg