Lor looks for Glorious lift-off
Hong Kong’s KOR Group 1 Korea Cup (1800m) contender Glorious Artist threw his head around as he moved at an eager canter down the home straight on the inner training track.
Trainer Frankie Lor, in attendance at yesterday’s barrier draw, was back in Hong Kong but will return before Sunday’s race to watch his first overseas runner.
“The rider told me he feels good and that he is having no problems with the track,” Lor said. “The left-hand-side bend shouldn’t be a problem: he has handled it well so we are confident (about that).
“The (sand) track, we still don’t know about. There is meant to be a typhoon coming which will bring rain so that will make it even softer.”
Lor hopes that Glorious Artist can kick off another season of high-profile wins. Last term, his second season with a licence, the handler had a Group 1 breakthrough when Mr Stunning took the LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint and Glorious Forever landed the LONGINES Hong Kong Cup on the same day. He then swept the Four-Year-Old Classic Series with Furore taking the Hong Kong Classic Mile and BMW Hong Kong Derby.
“Everything is going good with the Group 1 horses, I think we will see them again around the middle of November,” he said.
Two-time LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint winner Mr Stunning was scratched from the Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize at the end of April due to what turned out to be a stress fracture in his off-fore. He returned to training in early August.
“Mr Stunning has been back cantering for two weeks and I don’t want to push him,” Lor said. “December should be fine though; I think we’ll see him in November but I will need to think about whether he will be ready to run in October.
“Furore looks ok. He’s not too big but he looks nice, he looks stronger. I think he can make it in Group 1, he looks like a horse that will be effective from a mile to 2000 metres.”
Glorious Forever was unable to repeat his Group 1 triumph and was last seen placing fifth in the Group 1 Champions & Chater Cup in May. He was rested from the training roster for the whole of July.
“Glorious Forever looks ok,” Lor said. “There’s still a long way to go so it’s just step by step with him and he should be ready for November.”