Hat-trick hero Ong right on song again

It may be early days, but a treble on May 4 has taken reigning Singapore champion trainer Jason Ong yet another step closer to back-to-back crowns.

The final chapter of Singapore racing – which wraps up on Oct 5 – has only reached the halfway mark but, on 39 winners, Ong is already 15 winners clear of the next best, Daniel Meagher.

Mathematically, it is not an unassailable lead. But, with the biggest string of horses (55) at his disposal, it is hard to imagine anyone knocking him off his perch.

This time, he again went in with the strongest squad – 18 runners. They were not necessarily all massive chances, but casting the net wide has paid off once more.

Two favourites and his two best chances, Free And Happy ($15) and Engine Start ($10) obliged. As a bonus, he also netted one long shot, The Wild Prince ($246).

Such bread-and-butter sorts (Class 4 and 5) may not scale any further heights but, big or small, Ong has developed a knack for placing his horses in the right races.

Even when they fall short, having the luxury of strength in numbers eventually sees the yard quickly make amends. The horses either drop to a winnable class or just find better luck next time.

The Happy Baby Stable-owned Engine Start is a good case in point. Essentially a Class 4 horse (with two wins in that grade), the Highly Recommended five-year- old has struggled of late, but a drop back in Class 5 has brought instant results.

The big plunge to even-money favouritism boded even better when Marc Lerner settled him in the box-seat throughout.

Race-leader Fort Mustang (Krisna Thangamani) proved hard to pass when he did not crack under pressure at the 200m.

But, under the French jockey’s vigorous urgings, Engine Start wore him down to post a one-length win in 1min 40.16sec for the Polytrack mile of the $30,000 Class 5 Division 1 event.

Ong and Lerner seldom combine but they gel when they do, like with $175 long shot Healthy Baby on April 27.

Ong gave Lim’s Kosciuszko’s regular partner most of the credit in Engine Start’s fifth win.

“Marc’s horsemanship played a big part, he judged the pace to perfection,” said Ong.

“He was boxed in behind Fort Mustang, but he was able to come out at the right time. Credit to him.

“But also credit to the horse, who was looking for the mile. The rain also helped, he appreciates this sort of ground. He is a very consistent horse and has really matured since I took off the blinkers.”

Free And Happy is also raced by the Happy Baby Stable, but had leading jockey Bruno Queiroz in the irons this time.

The New Zealand-bred six-year-old by The Bold One also had only the front runner to mow down inside the last 200m.

But contrary to Engine Start, who was closer to the speed, Free And Happy got into the firing line after a long searching run from the back at the 1,100m.

By the home turn, he had pinched back around eight lengths and was ready to pounce. Green Star (Ryan Curatolo) tried to make all, but had no answer to Free And Happy’s superior turn of foot.

“His last few runs have been very good,” said Ong.

“He had bad feet issues and credit should go to (club farriers) Paul Summers and Gary Morley.

“He likes the Polytrack and today he had a light weight (50.5kg).”

Despite finishing last on Free And Happy at his only previous partnership, Queiroz was able to suss him out when it mattered.

“Jason never gives me any instructions. He leaves it to me,” said the Brazilian.

“I’ve ridden this horse before and he can either go in front, run with the pace or come from the back.

“Today, I knew they would go fast. So I decided to drop at the rear, he was very relaxed.”

A prolific rider every week, Queiroz oddly did not salute again that day, but was still beaming proudly at the winner’s circle.

He had his visiting parents, father Antonio, also a jockey, and mother Sandra, on hand at Kranji for the first time.

“It’s great to have my parents with me after a win,” said Queiroz. “They’re here for one month.

“Dad actually just won two races in Rio before flying to Singapore.”

With five other Brazilians riding at Kranji, the Queiroz’s support was unsurprisingly not confined to only their son.

They also jumped in the photo after Manoel Nunes guided Jin Sakamoto ($17) to his maiden win in the $50,000 Class 4 race (1,200m).

“Antonio is a good friend. I rode against him many times in Brazil,” said Nunes.

manyan@sph.com.sg