Moore not concerned about Takedown’s heavy schedule
TRAINER Gary Moore isn’t concerned about Takedown’s heavy travelling schedule ahead of the LONGINES Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint this Sunday.
The always-upbeat trainer says Takedown is showing no signs of fatigue despite having travelling from Melbourne to Perth, where it won the Group 1 Winterbottom Stakes and then to Hong Kong within a short period of time.
“There’s no indication from his blood profile that he’s jaded in any way,” Moore said.
“There’s no sign of fatigue. He’s a durable horse who does well in the stable and he looks really well.
“It was quite hot in Perth but he coped with the heat and came through the race in good order.
“In fact I thought he looked a lot brighter in the coat here in Hong Kong than what he did from Perth.”
Takedown is hoping to follow in the footsteps of Apache Cat which performed well in Perth before running third behind Inspiration in the 2008 Hong Kong Sprint.
“I think Apache Cat ran second in Perth before coming here and running so well the year Inspiration, trained by my brother John, won the Sprint,” Moore said.
Takedown has won its last four starts up to 1200 metres and Moore believes it’s the best distance for the four-year-old.
“It’s obviously his optimum distance and we may have erred stretching him to 1400 metres on occasions but then again he was unlucky at that trip [at] Caulfield in October and was probably above himself in condition when he ran at Flemington during [Melbourne] Cup week,” Moore said.
If Takedown was to win at $9.50 with Sportsbet.com.au, Hong Kong locals can expect to see Gary Moore’s usual exuberance, but a little dialed down.
“I think it’ll be a little bit more subdued but I’ll definitely jump for joy if we can win this great race,” Moore said.
Moore won the Prix de I’arc de Triomphe as a jockey in 1981 aboard Gold River and his dreams are still alive of training a major winner at the International Meeting at Sha Tin.
“I’ve won the greatest race in the world as a jockey and to come and win probably one of the greatest sprint races in the world would be something that I could be proud of,” Moore said.