Able Friend will prove too classy again in Chairman's Trophy, says John Moore
Trainer says super miler should destroy his rivals in Tuesday's feature at Sha Tin
Supremely confident trainer John Moore has some good news but plenty of bad news for his rivals as Able Friend looks to continue an impressive sequence of feature race victories in Tuesday's Group Two Chairman's Trophy at Sha Tin.
The good news that might offer hope for embattled rivals is that Moore has been soft on Able Friend in the lead-up to what amounts to a "prep run" for next month's $14 million Champions Mile, and that the giant chestnut has put on weight since racing just over three weeks ago.
It's the trainer's job to have the horse as fit as he needs to be to win the race, and why overtax him and pour the work into him when he is doing everything necessary to win his races easily?
The bad news? Moore still predicts his five-year-old will win handily, just as he has done for four straight races now, and doesn't expect his champion miler to be truly tested until he travels abroad.
"He hasn't been overtaxed with his work, but I still believe he will win," Moore said. Able Friend produced a relatively easy piece of fast work on Thursday.
"It's the trainer's job to have the horse as fit as he needs to be to win the race, and why overtax him and pour the work into him when he is doing everything necessary to win his races easily? He is such a gross horse that we need this lead-up race to keep him ticking over and make sure that a month from now when we do go into the Champions Mile, that we have him at the top of his game.
“His body weight is up, I think when they weigh him he will be around 1,280 pounds – that’s 20 pounds more than last start, but about the same as he was for the Stewards’ Cup two starts back and that’s right about where I want him now.”
