Richard Gibson’s Hong Kong Classic Mile experiment with Cordyceps Six returned solid results and now his youngster will tackle another trip for the first time in Sunday’s Class One TVB Yan Oi Tong Charity Show Handicap (1,400m) at Sha Tin.
Fourth behind Voyage Bubble in last month’s first leg of the Classic Series, Cordyceps Six raced over either 1,000m or 1,200m in his first 17 starts but has been a level below Hong Kong’s best speedsters, finishing seventh in December’s Group One Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m).
“Maybe 1,400m might be the best distance for him at the moment – right in between the trips,” said French jockey Alexis Badel, who has ridden Cordyceps Six four times for one victory.
“Coming back to 1,400m, this time he’s got the blinkers back on and that’s going to help him.
“He was drawn wide [in the Classic Mile], which made it harder for him. I thought he ran a great race. He stayed on well.”
While Cordyceps Six’s last half a dozen runs before the Classic Mile were at Group level, he still faces stern opposition in Sunday’s Class One contest for gallopers rated 95 and above.
Beauty Joy returns after his last-start fifth behind superstar trio Golden Sixty, Romantic Warrior and California Spangle in the Group One Stewards’ Cup (1,600m) and has Zac Purton climbing back aboard, while Healthy Happy chases what would be his first victory in more than a year.
Cordyceps Six has drawn gate two and Badel is likely to adopt similar tactics to those he employed from the far inferior barrier 13 in the Classic Mile, where he travelled forward of midfield with cover.
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“He’s got a nice starting position, so I’ll be looking for some cover before finding a way either through or out to try winning the race,” Badel said.
“He’s a very easy horse. He’s very relaxed. He’s never been very keen. It looks like it’s going to be a normal tempo. Nothing crazy. He relaxes pretty well and he’s got a good turn of foot, so I can put him anywhere I want.”
Rounding out the TVB Yan Oi Tong Charity Show Handicap field are Blaze Warrior, Turin Redsun, The Golden Scenery and Beluga.
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