Hong Kong trainer Caspar Fownes has confirmed five times Group 1 winning international sprinter Lucky Nine will be targeted at the 2013 Spring Racing Carnival.
The 6YO showed the young pretender a clean pair of heels in the Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m) at Sha Tin racecourse earlier this year when he swept to a convincing victory over a strong field of speedsters.
The son of Dubawi followed that up with an impressive victory in the Group 1 KrisFlyer International Sprint (1200m) at Kranji in Singapore last start.
While he was attending the Yasuda Kinen meeting in Japan on Sunday, Fownes confirmed Lucky Nine would target both the Group 1 Manikato Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley on October 25 as well as the Group 1 Patinack Farm Classic (1200m) at Flemington on November 9.
“I’ve wanted to go there for a few years now, but it comes at the wrong time for us because we look forward to our international races, but he’s already won one of them so we can play around with him,” Fownes said.
“He is in great form, you can be confident to travel with him and you’re not going to get any egg on your face.
“He doesn’t know how to run a bad race, the only time he ever runs a bad race there is a problem with him.”
Lucky Nine could potentially pick up US $1 million bonus should he win the Patinack Farm Classic and the Group 1 Hong Kong International Sprint (1200m) in December.
The ‘Global Sprint Challenge’ bonus is available to any horse that can win three legs of the series in three different countries and Lucky Nine has already captured the first leg by winning the KrisFlyer Sprint.
Victoria Racing Club would also paid a $600,000 bonus to the winner of the Patinack Farm Classic, if such horse has won a leg of the Global Sprint Challenge run outside Australia since 1 October 2012.
Last year’s Melbourne Cup winning jockey Brett Prebble is the regular rider of Lucky Nine.
By Owens Wong
