Hot pace suits Dream Alliance

True, Sunday’s 1,200m trip looks a tad short for champion trainer Tim Fitzsimmons’ hat-trick hero Dream Alliance in Race 6.

After all, his three wins were over 1,400m.

And, they were all come-from-behind efforts. Over 1,200m, he may not have time to catch up.

But, looking at the $70,000 Class 3 race, the pace is expected to be very hot with so many speedsters in the 12-horse field.

In All His Glory, Silent Is Gold, last-start winner War Pride and Cash Cove will likely vie for the rabbit’s role.

Ironchamp, who also prefers 1,400m and a little further, likes to play “catch me if you can”, too.

That is where he also races best.

But, as is often the case, taking each other on like the clappers will not benefit the speedsters.

If they go hard early on Sunday, strong finishers such as Dream Alliance will be charging home when the front-runners run out of breath at the business-end of the race.

The Legacy Power Racing Stable-owned Australian-bred has shown that he is no ordinary thoroughbred.

Besides consistency – five starts at Kranji for three triumphs and a second – he also possesses a dazzling turn of foot in the dash to the winning post.

His strengths have earned him three straight successes in fast times. He is not only a horse on the upward trajectory, but also one in a hurry.

He has to earn the rating points to have a crack at the Singapore Four-Year-Old Challenge, starting with the $110,000 Group 3 Silver Bowl over 1,400m on June 11.

Rested after his thundering come-from-behind victory on Nov 19, Dream Alliance has had two trials to return to race fitness.

He won one of them, coming from second last and wide with his pulverising finish to beat Qaidoom and War Pride, who both franked the form by winning their races.

That stands Dream Alliance in good stead.

But the gelding will not be piloted by the jockey who knows him inside out – four-time Singapore champion Manoel Nunes.

The Brazilian will instead be hopping aboard trainer Jason Lim’s Super Salute, whom he partnered to a back-to-back double in a Class 4 event over the Poly 1,200m.

“I am committed to ride Super Salute, that’s why I cannot ride Dream Alliance,” said Nunes.

“The 1,200m may be a bit short for Dream Alliance. But he is a very good horse, so you never know. He may run on top of them. The pace may suit him.”

With Nunes unavailable, Fitzsimmons has secured a capable replacement in Simon Kok, whose 1kg claim will also come in handy.

It will bring Dream Alliance’s weight down to a handy 53kg.

Nunes knows a strong pace may also suit Super Salute.

But he reckons trainer Stephen Gray’s Silent Is Gold (Ronnie Stewart) is the horse to beat.

“He has a good draw (2) and I think he will go to the front and it could be hard to catch him, but we’ll see.”

Super Salute will jump from Gate 7 and Dream Alliance from Gate 9.

A three-time winner over Sunday’s course and distance, Silent Is Gold drew double-digit berths in his last two starts but ran well to finish second and fourth.

His narrow second to Singapore Gold Cup winner Hongkong Great in his trial on Jan 31 suggests he is ready to score again.