Bank on promising Red Ruler to deliver Triple Trio riches
Red Ruler may have been somewhat of an enigma during his career, but he looks to have found the perfect event to show his true ability in the final leg of tomorrow afternoon's Triple Trio at Sha Tin.
With the opening TT pool being topped up to HK$12 million by the Jockey Club, the main prize on offer is expected to reach HK$20 million, and Red Ruler looks a value banker from a good draw under Darren Beadman.
The David Hall-trained gelding displayed nice promise early in his career, and finally produced what he had long promised when scoring a dominant win over My Way and Amazing Venture at his third run this campaign on January 10.
He was tried over varying distances without a great deal of success at his next five outings, mainly due to drawing poorly, but showed with a tidy last-start performance that he was again coming back to his best.
From a wide barrier, he was taken back to the tail of the field, was tight on room 200 metres from home, but closed off nicely to be beaten only two lengths by honest Elite Sixty-Six.
With the event likely to be run at a solid tempo, Beadman should be able to secure a nice spot around midfield, and the four-year-old should be presented at the right time in the straight.
Moon Chaser comes in fresh and looks the main danger on the evidence of a smart recent trial performance, while others capable of getting into the finish are Amazing Venture, Namjong Hunter, Malayan Bright and Tai Hang's Pride.
In the opening leg, in-form jockey Brett Prebble looks the man to follow when he teams up with promising California Moon, who is prepared by Tony Cruz.
He narrowly claimed his first start, was dominant winning his next outing, before turning in a good effort last time when tackling older horses for the first time after working in the run.
He should get all the favours in the run from the prime draw and prove too good, with his main danger and a terrific double banker being Special K, who has performed well at all of his six runs.
The other main contenders are Elite Sixty-Six, Invinciblekindness, Noble Choice and Gouf.
In the final leg, Amityship looks the safest way to go after showing he was on the improve with a solid effort last start behind classy Go Dan Go.
The Ricky Yiu Poon-fie-trained gelding's form has been indifferent in seven appearances, but his two efforts when stepping up to 1,600m have been full of merit.
He gets a nice advantage at the weights over his main dangers, should land in a lovely spot with the advantage of gate three, and have little trouble getting his career on track.
Smart Knight looks the main danger on the back of a last-start win, while others entitled to consideration are Majestic Heart, Spirit Of Lo Pan and Connoisseur's Love.
