Mr Black Back will be back for the big occasion

For fans of Mr Black Back – and there must be busloads out there – the wait is finally coming to an end.

After taking a break of more than 100 days, he will soon be back racing and the occasion will be the big one – the RM100,000 (S$30,760) Chinese New Year Prosperity Trophy on Jan 31.

A multiple winner at Kranji, Mr Black Back has been working hard towards that Malaysian debut.

Never a “morning glory”, he would have impressed the early birds at Sungai Besi when they watched him at his training gallop on the morning of Jan 27.

That day the son of Snitzel ran the 600m in 41.8sec.

If you were watching the clock, you might have said it was a “so-so” timing for the sharp sprint.

But, then again, record breakers at morning gallops sometimes fall flat on race days. So, do not be swayed by that 40sec-plus time.

Instead, go on the fact that trainer Lim Boon Thong is leaving no stone unturned and it was on Jan 28 that he – again – sent his runner out for a training gallop.

That time too, Mr Black Back did not burn up the track. Indeed, and on a yielding surface, he ran the trip in 40.2sec.

Anyway, it is safe to say that the seven-year-old is ripe and ready for the assignment coming up and the 1,600m looks right up his alley.

After all, two of his four wins at Kranji were over the “Prosperity” trip of 1,600m.

So accord him the respect that he is due and wish him a “happy season” at his new home.

Doubters will say that it is not going to be easy – and they might have a point.

After all, he comes up against some tough opponents and one of them – Antipodean – was also out on the training track on Jan 27 and Jan 28.

Trained by Tiang Kim Choi, Antipodean will not be short of work going into that feature event on Jan 31.

Already a household name on the Malaysian racing circuit, the nine-time winner (all under the care of Simon Dunderdale) turned in identical times of 37.4sec for both of his gallops.

Antipodean will go into the New Year Prosperity Trophy skirmish with revenge on his mind.

After all, he was a good thing beaten at his last start when second to Witnessimpact in that Supreme A race over 1,200m on Jan 12.

Like his main adversary, Mr Black Back, Antipodean will also be better suited to the 1,600m he has to cover on Jan 31.

So, as they say, hold on to your seats.

You could be witnessing a huge duel over the final furlong.

And it might not just be between that dynamic duo.

Also throwing his hat into the ring was Good Fight.

From Dunderdale’s bang-in-form stable, Good Fight was another “star performer” on the training track, clocking 39.8sec for his gallop on Jan 28.

It came on the back of a strong canter on Jan 27 and, by all counts, the trainer will – on race day – have him looking trim and taut.

An honest sort who has won 11 races and made the board on 16 other occasions, Good Fight will get into the contest on the back of a good win at his last start on Jan 19.

That day, when let loose in a 1,400m race, the seven-year-old by Super One made every post a winning one, taking the win with 3½ lengths to spare.

Yes, if on Jan 31, he can establish an early break on his rivals – Antipodean and Mr Black Back included – he could take some running down.

 

brian@sph.com.sg