Flashy Fiery Whisperer and General Danroad help Lui to a double
Flashy colt Fiery Whisperer made tremendous race-to-race improvement, showing no signs of worrying internal issues, as the griffin formed the first half of a Francis Lui Kin-wai double with a smart win up the straight.
When Brett Prebble rode the horse on debut five weeks ago, Fiery Whisperer pulled up with substantial blood in the trachea, an explanation for what the jockey felt was a below-par run.
'He probably didn't bleed today and it showed,' Prebble said. 'I felt like he was going to win last start, and I was a fraction disappointed until we scoped him after the race. He made some awful noises pulling up last start, it sounded like internal problems, and it turned out that was the case. In his last two gallops, he was clean, and I was confident today he would run first three.'
Those expectations were blown away when the two-year-old showed speed and tenacity to fight off another nice-looking two-year-old, Let Me Too.
'He definitely raised the bar a bit today and has come on,' Prebble said. 'He is a real fighter, and he fought the other day, too. He has got upside and he will go further, he is a nice horse.'
Lui said the drop back to 1,000m was purely to fit into programming and Fiery Whisperer will get 'at least 1,400m'.
'He is very mature and I think he has a lot of potential. He is doing all the right things,' the trainer said, adding his colt is likely to remain a colt as long as his temperament stays subdued.
'He is a quiet horse and has been no problems, we will leave him for now,' he said.
Zac Purton gave Lui his second winner when General Danroad came from behind to win his first race since the start of last season. It has taken a drop into Class Five for General Danroad to score again, and Purton has stuck solid through the freefall, partnering the horse in eight of his 10 starts this term.
'I've been riding him pretty much all season and it was his last run this season, so I stuck with him,' Purton said.
Lui said the key for General Danroad was genuine tempo, which he got as Take By Storm sprinted along in front. 'He is always going to need that sort of pace in a race,' Lui said.
