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Queen Elizabeth II made her first visit to the
Singapore Racecourse at Kranji this afternoon to witness the race named in
her honour and present the prizes to the winning connections.
And who else but the aptly named KING AND
KING, ridden by Richard Lim, should flash past the post first in the
S$350,000 Queen Elizabeth II Cup over 2000m.
Since finishing fourth in the Governor Gold
Cup in Peang on New Year’s Day, the five-year-old bay Australian gelding by
Celestial Dancer out of Merriang Road (by Persian Heights) has improved by
leaps and bounds.
In the new season, he was unbeaten in two
starts over 1800m, then stormed home to finish third to DIAMOND DUST in the
Chairman’s Prize over the less suitable trip of 1600m last month.
Winner of a race each at Moonee Valley and
Flemington before coming out here, KING AND KING (late Bojack) was handy
throughout, ranged alongside New Zealand Derby and last season’s Singapore
Gold Cup runner-up MOUNT STREET, who set the pace after a slightly slow
start, at the top of the straight.
The pair then drew away to fight out the
finish with KING AND KING prevailing by a neck. Newly crowned 2005 Singapore
Horse of the Year BIG EASY, who has just returned after two unplaced runs in
Dubai, finished third, a further one-and-a-half lengths away.
It was the first feature race success for
former jockey-turned-trainer Steven Burridge in his second season as a
trainer in Singapore. |
