Moore gambles on gear changes
Trainer hopes to spark Irian to Derby glory
Alan Aitken
John Moore will call on a combination of gear changes to bring the best from four-year-old Irian in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby - or consider another change involving the colt's manhood.
The expensive German import will carry blinkers and a hood in Sunday's HK$16 million classic as Moore tweaks the stallion to produce his best European form and add to the trainer's recent Derby wins with Viva Pataca and Collection.
"He'll wear a hood and half cup blinkers in the Derby," Moore revealed yesterday. "Firstly, the blinkers because [jockey] Darren Beadman and I both feel he should be coming out of the ruck with more kick than he has been so far.
"And we've gone Japanese-style with the hood because he just seems one of those horses who could pay more attention to what's being asked of him rather than what's going on around him.
"With the start of the Derby being in front of the grandstand crowd, the hood will deafen him and improve his focus and we hope the blinkers will do the same in the race."
Irian worked in the blinkers this week and Beadman reported "a much more settled and focused demeanour". The colt's poor trial this month has been put behind him.
"Irian was going great until he trialled but he was very stirred up before it and was gone 1,000m from the finish - something had to be wrong," Beadman said. "It turned out he had a bit of mucus and he's over that now and scoped clean after working yesterday in the blinkers and he felt sharper. He's been hitting a flat spot in his two races and, on those performances, the other chances have looked to have his measure. With the blinkers and the hood, though, there's some light at the end of the tunnel - and it isn't an oncoming train," Beadman said.
Unlike Moore's most recent Derby successes from Europe, Viva Pataca, Collection and the 2004 runner-up Tiber, Irian has been left a colt as owner Siu Pak-kwan is hoping to stand him at his stud farm in Australia when his racing career is over.
The paradox of that plan is that Irian needs to perform at the top level on the track to be worth standing and he might not be a colt for much longer if that doesn't happen.
"Irian isn't the worst colt you'd see," Moore said. "He's like a pet when he's in his box, but you can't take him lightly once he's outside - he'll be rearing up in the air as soon as you take your eye off him.
"If he does win the Derby, then he could be fairly valuable but, without that kind of performance, his pedigree is not good enough to carry him as a stallion. The owner has said that, if necessary, we'll give consideration to gelding him in order to get his act together as a racehorse.":dddd: :dddd: :dddd:
Racing is filled with stories of top gallopers which would never have amounted to much if left intact, not the least of them legendary Australian horse Kingston Town, which ran last at his only start as a colt then went on to become one of the greats in the 1980s are being gelded.
"When I bought Collection, his trainer, William Haggas, warned me he was getting to be quite a handful and the first thing we needed to do was cut him," Moore recalled. "As for Viva Pataca - even as a gelding he was no picnic. He would have been a nightmare to handle as a colt and I doubt he would have turned out the horse he has without being gelded."
Moore reported his other Derby purchase who didn't quite make it to Sunday's race, Carthage, might have turned the corner after a gelding operation on Monday.
"We have a reason for his trial efforts now - Carthage had a badly twisted right testicle that was causing him considerable pain and was swelling up because it was collecting blood in a pocket around it," he said.:jjjj: :yyy: :yyy: :yyy:
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