By Alan Carasso
In the few minutes prior to the start of Sunday's Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Kranji, trainer Cliff Brown told the Singapore Turf Club's Matt Jones that he was more “hopeful” than anything else that the in-form Laughing Gravy (Aus) (Primus {Aus}) could maintain an upward trajectory. The task would be tough Sunday, facing the best local middle-distance horses at level weights, but Laughing Gravy proved more than equal to the task with another barnstorming success.
The 5-year-old found a recent purple patch of form with a win in a modest BM67 handicap Apr. 1 followed by a BM89 two weeks later. With only 49.5kg (109 pounds) on his back for his latest, he charged down the lane to take a course-and-distance test by 4 3/4 lengths May 15, with no fewer than five of Sunday's rivals behind. Despite carrying another 19 pounds, Laughing Gravy schooled them yet again.
Forced to go five wide into the first turn as Order of the Sun (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}) mustered to lead after a slow start, Laughing Gravy pulled his way up into third while racing in the breeze as they turned down the backstretch. With no real change in the order in the middle, Order of the Sun took them into the turn, but Glen Boss had allowed Laughing Gravy to slide up one spot and had the leader in the crosshairs with a little more than 600 metres to travel. Popped the question at the head of the lane, the 4-1 third choice quickly staked his claim to the front, kicked into an unassailable lead and ran out an impressive winner. Cooptado (Arg) (Equal Stripes {Arg}) stayed on dourly into second, while Bourbon Goldman (NZ) (Gallant Guru {Aus}), last early, rallied up the rails to outfinish joint favorite Fastnet Dragon (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) for third.
“I thought he needed to improve, but Glen had a different opinion and he convinced me,” said Brown, who was winning his third domestic Group 1 of the year (Debt Collector {NZ}, Singapore Guineas; Zac Spirit {Aus}, Lion City Cup). “Look, I'm hopeless when it comes to being positive and even my wife has to remind me all the time I worry about everything, but it's worked out good. I was actually happy all week with the way he has trained and was going into the race. Just getting him to the 2000m was the key with him. He looked like he would be wide and they would keep him up, but credit to Glen for pressing on at the first turn.”
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Sunday, Kranji, Singapore
QUEEN ELIZABETH II CUP, S$500,000 (£251,711/€324,896/A$501,338/US$362,845), 3yo/up, 2000mT, 2:01.51, gd.
1–#LAUGHING GRAVY (AUS), 128, g, 5, Primus (Aus)–Foxy Moi (Aus), by Rubiton (Aus). O-Laughing Gravy Stable; B-K Heffernan (Vic); T-Cliff Brown; J-Glen Boss; S$297,500. Lifetime Record: 18-7-1-3, S$545,289.
2–Cooptado (Arg), 128, g, 5, Equal Stripes (Arg)–Coordinada (Arg), by Ride the Rails. O-Red Stable. S$106,250.
3–Bourbon Goldman (NZ), 128, g, 6, Gallant Guru (Aus)–Zerperfluous (NZ), by Zerpour (Ire). (NZ$8,000 RNA 2yo '11 NZBSIS). O-San Ong Boon. S$53,750.
Margins: 2HF, 3/4, 1. Odds: 4.00, 27.00, 28.00
Also Ran: Fastnet Dragon (Aus), Quechua (Arg), Perfect P (Arg), One Rar (Aus), Order of the Sun (Aus), Stepitup (Aus).
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