3 minute read
In-form trainer Michael Clements already has an embarrassment of riches in the Singapore Three-Year-Old Challenge with three smart sorts doing battle later in the first Leg, but guess what, he may well have another one to beef up the squad – Vittoria Perfetta.
The son of Zoustar showed his maiden win (despite losing a shoe) at his second Kranji start in a Restricted Maiden race over 1400m was no flash in the pan when just as conquering in tackling stronger Class 4 company in the $50,000 Conflight 2016 Stakes on Friday night.
Ridden by Vlad Duric again, Vittoria Perfetta slotted into the slipstream of runaway leader Redoubt (Iskandar Rosman) from the outset before asserting his undisputed superiority inside the last 300m.
As Redoubt wobbled out towards the middle of the track under pressure, Vittoria Perfetta ($68) found himself shooting straight to a winning position from a fair bit out, but easily maintained the tempo through the line for an imposing two-length win from Our Pinnacle (Daniel Moor) with Magnificent Gold (Michael Rodd) third another length away.
Raced by the Cloud Nine Stable, Vittoria Perfetta clocked 1min 36secs for the mile on the Short Course.
Clements, who saddles Siam Vipasiri, Siam Blue Vanda and Top Knight later in the Group 3 JBBA Singapore Three-Year-Old Sprint (1200m), was certainly not complaining he could rely on one more bullet for the longer Legs – the Group 2 Singapore Three-Year-Old Classic (1400m) on May 3 and the Group 1 Singapore Guineas (1600m) on May 25.
“He has been looking for distance. It’s just that he has been an immature type,” said the Zimbabwean-born conditioner.
“He was up against winners tonight, but he still won well. We didn’t want to push him. When the pressure came on, he responded very well.
“This horse could be the real deal. I’ve always thought he was more of a four-year-old and might need further later on.
“We may even run him in the Guineas after his next run.”
Duric was equally enthusiastic about Clements’ latest gem.
“I knew what I had tonight. He is a really genuine horse, he’s pretty handy,” said the Australian ace.
“I knew the other horse (Redoubt) and I knew he would come back to us. He had four kilos off, but the kid was already feeling it around the home turn.
“I trusted my horse and I knew we couldn’t lose the race. I really like this horse.”
Raced by the Cloud Nine Stable, Vittoria Perfetta has already collected a tidy amount of around $70,000 for his lucky connections.
Speaking of Perfetta, which means perfect in Italian, Duric was himself enjoying a superb night of his own as he went on to land the next two races - Broadway Success ($80) in the $30,000 Kiwi Karma 2015 Stakes, a Class 5 race over 1200m and Clarton Palace ($12) in the $30,000 War Affair 2014 Stakes, a Class 5 Division 2 race over 1400m.
All of a sudden, the two-time Singapore champion jockey (on 28 winners) has put a space of nine winners between him and the next best, Noh Senari.
