A preparatory run at Sandown before departing for Hong Kong for December’s major race meeting is quite uncommon these days, but trainer Gavin Bedggood is embracing the situation with optimism as the racing calendar unfolds.
Kingswood surprised many followers when he secured victory at odds of $26 in the Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) on October 17. While he won’t be available at such generous odds this Saturday at Sandown, his trainer anticipates a strong performance before the horse travels to Hong Kong for the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase (2400m) on December 13.
The six-year-old received his initial mandatory inoculation for the international trip just days after his Caulfield Cup win, with his booster scheduled shortly after his next engagement, the Group 2 Zipping Classic (2400m).
“Four weeks between runs allowed us to give him a quiet week and we’d had to tighten the screws again since,” Bedggood remarked after Kingswood’s gallop at Caulfield on Tuesday.
“I’d like to see him win again this week. To be going over there and racing on the world stage, he’d have to be winning or being unlucky not to win for me not to want to go.”
Kingswood is set to become the first Caulfield Cup victor to compete in the Zipping Classic in the same year since Bunratty Castle in 1968.
Under the handicap conditions of that era, Bunratty Castle carried 8 stone 11 pounds, equivalent to just over 55.5kg, whereas Kingswood will carry 59kg under the current weight-for-age regulations.
Bedggood is committed to presenting a competitive contender in Hong Kong and has maintained the same focused approach that facilitated a swift return to his usual training regimen following the Caulfield Cup success.
“When I got to work on the Monday morning and you have to open the front gate at 2:45am, it was back to normal,” he added.
The trainer expressed satisfaction with the grey’s Tuesday gallop at Caulfield in preparation for his return to racing at Sandown.
Kingswood is currently listed as the $4 second favourite in the early betting markets for the Zipping Classic, trailing Joseph O’Brien’s charge, Small Fry, who is priced at $2.10.