3 minute read

Trainer Leslie Khoo thought the six furlongs would be too sharp for Basilisk on Friday night, but a fast tempo played into their hands in the last race.

The Battle Paint five-year-old's best form had been over 1400m, with all his three wins recorded over that journey.

Caught three wide throughout the $50,000 Class 4 affair, Basilisk, however, enjoyed some cover from Golden Flame (Patrick Moloney) ahead of him. When Brazilian jockey Ruan Maia hooked him to the outside after they spun off the bend, from the way he powered home, it was clear he would be playing a major part at the business end.

Coming off the back of an ideal run in the box-seat, Resolution (Alysha Collett) had one foot on the till when he collared and mastered pacesetter Yulong Green (Vlad Duric), but he had not reckoned with Basilisk's blazing finish from left field.

Well ridden by Maia, Basilisk ($17) came finishing over the top of them to salute by 1 ½ lengths from Resolution with Yulong Green third another three-quarter length away. The winning time was 1min 11.87secs for the 1200m on the Polytrack.

With that fourth win from 32 starts, along with his nine placings, Basilisk, who was Khoo's only runner for the night, has now pushed his earnings close to the $200,000 mark for his owner Tan Le En.

"This horse has improved a lot, but I would actually have preferred him to run over 1400m," said Khoo.

"But I tried him on Polytrack over 1200m tonight, and Maia rode him very well. I told him to settle him on the outside as he tends to drop out when he is among horses.

"I think I will run him over 1600m next. It'll be his first time, we've got to try."

Maia said he had done his homework by watching Basilisk's recent race replays, especially the last start in a Class 4 Division 2 race on February 14 when he flew home for fourth under Joseph See, beaten in a blanket finish by only a head by the winner Golden Dash.

"I watched his last run and he ran on very well. He had a light weight (52.5kgs) and I was quite confident he would run well," said the two-time Macau champion jockey who was at a riding double after scoring earlier on My Everest (see earlier report).

"Leslie also told me to put him on the outside as he can a bit shy on the inside. They went quick in front, and once I let him go in the straight, he finished very strongly."