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| Staff Writer |
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From “unrideable”, smart but temperamental sprinter Lim’s Lightning has gone on to give Daniel Meagher an unbelievable ride towards a tilt at a first Gr.1 victory for the young trainer next Saturday.
The 2018 Singapore juvenile champion will contest the $300,000 Gr.1 Lion City Cup (1200m) off the back of only one start (and victorious at that) at Kranji since unexpectedly returning from an Australian stint that yielded mixed results in both Queensland and Victoria last year.
Going back to square one was not smooth sailing because Lim’s Lightning, who was already not the most straightforward horse when Steven Burridge trained him at his first local career, had turned outright rogue.
Meagher had to start from scratch to get the Lope De Vega five-year-old re-schooled, race-fit, and battle-ready for his comeback race, which turned out to be a Class 2 race over 1200m in March 20.
Just to get the recalcitrant customer’s name back on a racecard was a mini victory in itself. While his last Singapore start saw him run a belter when third to Top Knight in the Gr.1 Singapore Guineas (1600m) in May 2019, both his ante-Guineas form and Australian formline could not really predispose Meagher to any fireworks first-up.
But under a gun ride from Wong Chin Chuen, Lim’s Lightning showed that the engine of old had never died down by mustering a stirring win in a three-way go. Caught wide throughout, he still let down with that same turn of foot that propelled him to four wins before, including the Gr.2 Aushorse Golden Horseshoe (1200m) in 2018.
After such a sensational win, connections could not ignore the inviting Lion City Cup doors that were flung wide open.
Meagher, who has assisted his famous Melbourne Cup-winning father John to seven Gr.1 wins at Kranji during their 11 years in Singapore, has not himself had Gr.1 opportunities galore since he returned with a trainer’s licence in his own right in 2016, but suddenly has a first decent shot with a horse who had all but bade farewell to Kranji.