Grand Armee and ever accurate Whyte on song in QEII prep

Champion jockey Douglas Whyte had his first ride on Grand Armee yesterday morning and came away not only with that familiar winning feeling but with his reputation for an unmatched sense of timing further enhanced.

Whyte handled the multiple Australian Group One winner in a preparatory gallop on the Sha Tin course proper for Sunday's $14 million Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup, and followed the instructions of travelling foreman Steve Dennett to the letter.

'I asked him to go 1,200 metres at a working gallop, even time, and then come home the last 400m, making him go to the line the final 200 metres,' Dennett said.

Those who claim the Durban Demon has a clock in his head were not surprised to find that Grand Armee and Whyte ran the first 400 metres in 30.0 and the second 400 metres in 30.0 - even time down to the last tenth of a second. The Aussie visitor then dashed home the final 400m in 23.3 seconds.

'He is an absolutely fantastic horse to sit on,' Whyte said later. 'And it's quite surprising too, because for such a big horse he's extremely athletic. He has an enormous stride but a very quick change of pace.

'He travelled beautifully [and] when I asked him to pick up, he did so in a matter of strides. He had a good stretch the last 200m and felt wonderful.'