Vengeance bids to break the jinx
Ferraris hopes his Derby champion can take the Cup, too, where many others have failed
Makarpura Star, Oriental Express, Johan Cruyff, Keen Winner, Industrial Pioneer, Olympic Express, Elegant Fashion and Lucky Owners. It's an impressive list with at least two things in common - they are Hong Kong Derby winners and were beaten in the Queen Elizabeth II Cup.
In fact, since the QE II Cup went international in 1995, only two of the eight Derby heroes which ran in it have been placed: the David Hayes-trained Elegant Fashion doing best in 2003 as runner-up to Eishin Preston in what was a two-horse race on the form book, while Johan Cruyff finished third in 1998 as the $27 second favourite.
Industrial Pioneer started $28 and second elect when 10th to Silvano in 2001, Lucky Owners was sixth as favourite last year, while Olympic Express, arguably the most impressive Derby winner of recent years, toiled in eighth in the 2002 QE II as one of the favoured runners.
In fact, the only joy for Derby form was when Industrialist finished only fourth in the 2000 Derby but improved to win the international - something he demonstrated by winning the Hong Kong Gold Cup in between, making him unique among the Derby horses which have flopped - and David Ferraris will probably take more comfort in that than the other collective evidence that Vengeance Of Rain is pushing it uphill historically in the QE II tomorrow.
'I'm aware of the records and they are a bit worrying,' Ferraris said yesterday. 'But I'm wondering if perhaps those Derby winners were horses who had peaked or were not going through afterwards. Vengeance Of Rain is a Zabeel and, like all the good Zabeels, he's just going to get better and I tell you honestly, this horse has improved since the Derby.'
That's some statement since the four-year-old clobbered a good Derby field, but South Africa's former champion trainer makes no bones about where he ranks Vengeance Of Rain among the many Group One horses he has handled.
'I suppose it's hard to assess how he measures up against international standard horses like these, but he is certainly better than the champions I trained in South Africa,' he says. 'Now they were outstanding horses there and might have been good enough for this sort of race too but never had the chance. The only guide I have is how Mike de Kock's South African horses have performed overseas in the last couple of years and they have been very competitive.'
Vengeance Of Rain had a 'nice little blowout' yesterday morning.
'He is big, he eats well, takes his work and he's a pleasure to train,' he said. 'He works alone because he would do too much with another horse, but when he needs that extra, I can put him with another on the grass.
'He's a terrific horse to fine-tune and so powerful - watch him, he doesn't just push with the back, he actually pulls through with the front legs, which may have been the cause of the stress fracture deep in his shoulder that set him back last September.'
The trainer's enthusiasm is palpable and Ferraris is keen to take on the world with Vengeance Of Rain. It may not happen in foreign lands until next season, but the QE II Cup looks an ideal proving ground.
