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Coin Toss caps memorable 800th Singapore win for Clements in Guineas

3 minute read

Coin Toss stamped himself as the dominant three-year-old in Singapore on Saturday by adding the $150,000 Group 2 Singapore Guineas (1600m) to his Group 2 Singapore Three-Year-Old Classic (1400m) victory earlier this month, winning two out of the three Legs in the reinstated Singapore Three-Year-Old Challenge this year.

COIN TOSS winning the SINGAPORE GUINEAS GROUP 2
COIN TOSS winning the SINGAPORE GUINEAS GROUP 2 Picture: Singapore Turf Club

In doing so, he also gave trainer Michael Clements his 800th win in Singapore after the affable Zimbabwean-born conditioner knocked in his 799th win with Pacific Emperor ($6) in the $50,000 Mr Clint 2018 Stakes, a Class 4 Division 2 race over 1200m eight races earlier.

But it was all about the Singapore Guineas on Saturday. With the late scratching of Takanini, Clements had three runners – Coin Toss , Pacific Warrior and Pacific Star  – heading to the 1600m chute with Coin Toss starting as the $14 favourite over Pacific Warrior, who also came in with strong support ($19).

With no one keen to take up the running early, it was Pacific Warrior (Wong Chin Chuen), who wore blinkers for the first time, that took the initiative after jumping well from barrier five.

Trainer Donna Logan's pair of January (Simon Kok Wei Hoong) and Luxury Brand (Yusoff Fadzli) also made use of their good barriers to race on the speed early. Bestseller (Bernardo Pinheiro) was also handy in the run, albeit three-wide with no cover.

Coin Toss (Daniel Moor) was stalking the leading quartet. His backers must have been smiling with no change in the order heading into the straight and there appeared to be galloping room for the 3YO Classic winner on the outside.

More so, January and Luxury Brand were starting to labour when Wong kicked Pacific Warrior clear at the 350m. But with Pacific Warrior's strides shortening at the 200m, it looked a race in two between the Ricardo Le Grange-trained Bestseller and Coin Toss.

But just like the final furlong in the second Leg of the 3YO series, Bestseller hit the front and looked to be able to add a Group win to his CV, before Coin Toss levelled up at the 100m. After a brief tussle, the latter won going away by a length with the gallant Pacific Warrior another length back in third.

Maximum Control (Louis-Philippe Beuzelin) – at just his second start - ran on late a further two-and-three-quarters length away in fourth. The winning time for the 1600m on the Short Course was 1 min 34.08secs.

It was Clements' third win in the Singapore Guineas after he first won it with Revolte in 2009 when it was a Group 3 race and then claiming it again with Top Knight 10 years later when it was of Group 1 status.

"It was a great effort from the horse and rider," Clements told racing presenter Raymond Yong after the race.

"I'm really happy that he stepped up over the mile. Potentially, we always thought he could do it, but of course he had to prove it today.

"I think Daniel rode a great race today. He definitely had him a lot closer to the speed. Stepping up to the 1600m, I think that was warranted compared to his last start when he ran over 1400m and got back further.

"He had him a lot closer today and the track's running fast, so I think it was the right thing to have done."

After bringing up his 800-win milestone in Singapore, Clements was both reflective and proud of the achievement.

"It's been a long journey," said the naturalised Singaporean who won 260 races in Zimbabwe where he trained for five years before coming to Singapore.

"When we set up shop back in Bukit Timah in 1998, I honestly thought I would be here for a few years and then move on. Kranji (racecourse) was being built and the Singapore Turf Club wanted some expatriate trainers, so we stayed.

"There had been plenty of ups and downs but Singapore has been good to me and I became a citizen in 2011. To bring up 800 wins is a great achievement and something I'm very proud of.

"And to have shared my 800th win with Kuldeep Singh (Rajput, owner of the Gandharvi Stable) and Coin Toss in the Guineas, that was really exciting.

"It's great to be winning Group races for him so early in his Singapore venture and hopefully, plenty more to come."

The 57-year-old trainer became the youngest trainer to bring up 800 wins in Singapore and was only the fifth to do so behind the late legendary trainer Laurie Laxon, ex-Kranji handler and South African Pat Shaw, Australian Steven Burridge and Kiwi Stephen Gray, who achieved the feat earlier this year.

Moor – who earlier rode Diaz ($12) for trainer Tim Fitzsimmons in the $20,000 Forever Young 2017 Stakes, an Open Maiden race over 1000m – was full of praise for Coin Toss.

"He's a lovely horse. He made my job very easy," said Moor of the son of Flying Artie.

"The team around me too. (Together with) the two Michaels (Clements and his assistant-trainer, White), we have faith in us to know how the horse had to be ridden and we have great trust in the horse.

"We knew he's going to be effective late. We stuck together today and we've pulled off another nice race.

"I really can't wait for this horse to progress and develop. Next year, a race like the (Group 1) Kranji Mile (1600m) is not beyond him and he's got the (Singapore) Four-Year-Old series and everything, so the world is his oyster at the moment.

"I think we ran the trip out the strongest at his last race (3YO Classic). There were some other horses that didn't run out the last (second) Leg of the 3YO series.

"And we were good through the line as my horse didn't pull or do anything wrong. I was very confident he would be able to handle the step-up in trip. He's been very effective and will get even further."

Coin Toss' fourth win – and his second at Group 2 level – took his earnings to over $250,000 for connections.


Singapore Turf Club

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