By Alan Carasso
Trainer Michael Freedman, highly successful during an eight-year stay in Singapore and more recently with a group of unproven horses in Sydney, has been granted a trainer's licence by the Hong Kong Jockey Club for the 2017/2018 season and will take up residence at Sha Tin following the conclusion of the current racing calendar in Hong Kong.
Freedman, 48, made a total of 470 trips to the winner's circle at Kranji, tying for the trainers' premiership in 2012 with 76 winners and finished in the top five in seven of those eight seasons with a 15% strike rate. Among his 36 group-race winners were two-time Horse of the Year, champion 3-year-old and champion sprinter Super Easy (NZ) (Darci Brahma {NZ}), who bagged nine big-race victories in Singapore and was third to Hong Kong-based Lucky Nine (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the G1 KrisFlyer International Sprint in 2013. All but one of Super Easy's wins came with Joao Moreira at the controls, and that partnership could be reborn at Sha Tin. Freedman, the youngest brother of Hall of Fame trainer Lee Freedman, also conditioned champion juvenile Super One (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}), imperious in four wins in Singapore before continuing his career in Australia, where he added the G3 McKay S. in Adelaide. Super One now stands at Newgate Farm in New South Wales. More recently, the Freedman-trained Teaspoon (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) made it two from two for John Messara's Arrowfield Stud in the G3 Widden S., while Frolic (Aus) (Husson {Arg}) broke her maiden in the valuable Inglis Classic at Randwick.
“I was incredibly excited to get the call up this afternoon from the Hong Kong Jockey Club,” Freedman told the HKJC press team. “It has been a long-held ambition to train in Hong Kong, which is a world leader in everything that it does. It would be an understatement to say that I am looking forward to this challenge. I would like to express my thanks and appreciation to the Licensing Committee for giving me this unique opportunity.”
Added Andrew Harding, the executive director, racing authority, for the HKJC: “Michael Freedman was selected from a field of high quality contenders and possesses all the attributes required to succeed in the ultra-competitive Hong Kong environment. His career of extensive and ongoing success at group race level, his track record in sourcing quality horses from across the world, the long-time loyalty of his owners, his ability to operate across multiple and varied training environments, his international experience, and his personal probity and integrity all identify Michael as being an exceptional talent who will make an excellent addition to Hong Kong's roster of trainers. The role that our trainers play in sourcing and then developing horses to perform at this elite level of competition is essential. Accordingly, we are extremely pleased to add to our ranks a trainer with the vast experience and proven track record that Michael Freedman possesses.”
Freedman will be introduced to the Hong Kong media at a press conference Friday, Feb. 24.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
