El Morro 'may well have played role in deciding title destiny'

Talented sprinter El Morro may have played a crucial role in separating leading jockeys Brett Prebble and Douglas Whyte in the season premiership, according to trainer Caspar Fownes.

Fownes said he had initially offered the ride to Whyte, who elected to stick with impressive last-start winner Seek N' Destroy for trainer John Size which in turn paved the way for Prebble to pick-up the winning mount and equalise the tally at four apiece. 'It's a terrific result for Brett, because Dougy may well have pegged two back on him in the premiership today if the circumstances had been different,' Fownes said. 'I offered Dougy the ride as he'd won on him before, but it's understandable that he wanted to stick with John's horse after he won so well last start.

'It's a shame Dougy couldn't have ridden him, but Brett did a great job as always and really made the difference in the finish.' El Morro sprinted quickly down the centre of the track to claim runner-up Shining Victory by a short head, with a ?length to spare over tiring leader No More Green. It was the four-year-old's fourth win from six starts and the trainer is confident he isn't done with yet.

'Originally I was going to start him in the 1,000-metre event last week, but 10 days ago I decided to save him for this 1,200-metre race just because I thought it was going to suit him better,' Fownes said.

'He's done his job, and who knows, he may have played his part in deciding the premiership today. This battle between Brett and Dougy is terrific for racing in Hong Kong, it's a really exciting finish to the season and it will keep the fans coming out right to the last meeting.'