By Alan Carasso
The 'beast from the East' is officially back at the track.
Able Friend (Aus) (Shamardal), sidelined since the beginning of the year with a strained flexor tendon and unraced since a third-place effort as the favorite in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Mile 11 months ago, trialled Friday morning over the Sha Tin all-weather track, finishing a quiet fifth and thoroughly pleasing his connections.
“We'll see later how he trots up and everything but so far we're right on track to bring the champ back into the Hong Kong racing scene,” trainer John Moore enthused post-trial.
Imperious in winning the 2014 Mile at long odds-on, Able Friend, the 2014-2015 Horse of the Year, was under an injury cloud on the eve of his title defence last December and could not match strides late with future Japanese Horse of the Year Maurice (Jpn) (Screen Hero {Jpn}). Less than a month later, he found himself on a plane bound for Australia to recuperate and had been brought along slowly by Moore since his re-introduction to training in September.
Partnered in Friday's star-studded trial by Joao Moreira, Able Friend was off in the air and trailed the field, then was quietly ridden through the middle stages. Still near the tail of the field as they left the 400-metre marker behind, he was niggled along by Moreira to pick up and looked comfortable in his action in finishing about a length off the local top-rated sprinter Lucky Bubbles (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}), who grabbed the talented Sun Jewellery (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) on the wire (video). The first and second home will prep for the Longines Hong Kong International Races in the G2 BOCHK Jockey Club Sprint and G2 BOCHK Jockey Club Mile at Sha Tin on Sunday week. Able Friend is set to face Lucky Bubbles in the Jockey Club Sprint and is likely to progress from there to the Hong Kong Mile, though he has the Sprint as a fallback option.
“I thought he trialled really well,” said Moreira of Able Friend, who was timed in 1:11.20. “I think that for a horse that hasn't raced for such a long time, to go out there and perform how he did this morning, you'd think he's on his way back to his best. I think he's not going to disappoint us–I think he will turn out to be what he used to be.”
Added Moore: “Joao said, 'Keep the horse going in the same way as you have.' He said the horse felt very sound underneath him–he finished off pretty well. It was a little tight early on, he had someone to his outside where he couldn't really make the ground he wanted, but in the straight Joao had plenty of horse. It's a nice starting point for him. I need to get that 1200m underneath his belt on Sunday week and then we'll decide whether it's the sprint or the mile in December.”
In the morning's second heat, Amazing Kids (NZ) (Falkirk {NZ}), an unlucky second to Lucky Bubbles in the G2 Premier Bowl H. Oct. 23, found the wire narrowly ahead of Contentment (Aus) (Hussonet), who covered extra ground and finished willingly (video). That duo is also headed to the Jockey Club Sprint and Mile, respectively, en route to the corresponding international races Dec. 11.
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