Three-time champ Nunes heads the foreign charge
There's no lack of depth in the expatriate riding ranks at Kranji
Racing fans just love to talk. And since each fancies himself a jockey, they dissect races with the authority of a racing steward.
Their "discussions" will happen at the end of a raceday and their preferred stage is the neighbourhood coffee shop.
Great, if it was a "good day". Woe betide if they finished in the red. That's when the blame game starts.
For no rhyme or reason, they'll target the jockeys and jibes like, "my grandfather can ride better" will litter the conversation.
What they don't realise is that they're a privileged lot. The guys we have here are not over-the-hill hoops having a last hurrah before hanging up their boots.
They are some of the best in the business and the Singapore Turf Club has renewed their licences. Be thankful for that.
So, who are these world-class riders plying their trade in Singapore?
Taking it from the top, there's that Brazilian genius, Manoel Nunes.
The 41-year-old has hogged headlines in Argentina, Mauritius, Dubai, Hong Kong and Macau, where he became a household name and its champion on numerous occasions from the mid-2000.
A treat to watch when he is plotting a course through the field, Nunes has been champion jockey here for three consecutive seasons, the latest with 75 winners. He'll be with us throughout 2017.
Then there's Australian Corey Brown.
This Melbourne Cup-winning jockey steered home 53 winners in the 2016 Kranji season and is often on call to ride the "big races" in Australia.
What about Glen Boss?
Now, who doesn't know him? Best known for his association with Makybe Diva, whom he steered to three Melbourne Cup wins, the 47-year-old has won everything there is to win in Australia. Now he's doing it here.
Boss returned to riding at Kranji in May and, in the seven months, notched up 25 winners. He'll be here for the next six months.
Let's not forget Vlad Duric.
He, who rode the winner of the 2007 Caulfield Cup, was second in the just-concluded season with 66 winners and looks ready to pick up from where he left off.
Of course, racegoers will get to see Kranji's other stars in Danny Beasley, John Powell, Alan Munro, Michael Rodd and Nooresh Juglall for yet another year.
Joining Boss on a six-month permit will be Barend Vorster, Derreck David, Olivier Placais and Elione Chaves.
As if that's not enough talent congregated in one jurisdiction, there's the added attraction of watching that exciting Frenchman, Gerald Mosse, in action. A regular visitor to the winner's enclosure in Hong Kong, Mosse has been licensed for three months.
With such a galaxy of stars just an MRT ride away, the new season looks like being a bumper one - even for the most discerning racegoer.
Licensees for 2017
JAN 1 TO DEC 31
Local jockeys
M Kellady, S John, B Woodworth, K A'Isisuhairi and R Shafiq
Expatriate jockeys
M Rodd, V Duric, D Beasley, N Juglall, J Powell, M Nunes, A Munro and C Brown
Apprentice jockeys
I Amirul, MM Firdaus, CC Wong and T See
JAN 1 TO JUNE 30
Local jockeys
O Chavez, S Sam, E Aslam, M Ewe, I Azhar and I Saifudin
Expatriate jockeys
D David, G Boss, B Vorster, O Placais and E Chaves
Apprentice jockeys
K Toh, CK Ng, Y Salim and WS Chan
JAN 1 TO APRIL 30
Apprentice jockey
Z Zuriman
JAN 1 TO MARCH 31
Local jockeys
TH Koh, M Zaki and S Anandan
Expatriate jockey
G Mosse
Apprentice jockeys
CS Chin, R Zawari, R Azhar, H Syafiq, N Nurshahril, Z Syed and S Shafrizal
YESTERDAY’S HONG KONG (HAPPY VALLEY) RESULTS
RACE 1
1st 4 Acclaimed Light ($43-$12)
2nd 11 Agiaal ($21)
3rd 5 Super Form ($6)
4th 3 Excel Oneself
Forecast $129.
Place Forecast (4-11) $35, (4-5) $7, (5-11) $17.
Tierce $845.
Trio $53.
Quartet $15948.
Quadro $2592.
RACE 2
1st 1 Excellence ($21-$9)
2nd 9 Dashing Fortune ($24)
3rd 2 Glory Star ($24)
4th 3 Double Point
Forecast $78.
Place Forecast (1-9) $27, (1-2) $26, (2-9) $53.
Tierce $1707.
Trio $654.
Quartet No winner ($3940 jackpot carried forward to next race).
Quadro $1578.
RACE 3
1st 5 Wild Boy ($98-$18)
2nd 4 Never Better ($6)
3rd 10 Confucius Spirit ($12)
4th 7 Powermax
Forecast $40.
Place Forecast (4-5) $13, (5-10) $31, (4-10) $8.
Tierce $702.
Trio $68.
Quartet $5251.
Quadro $73.
RACE 4
1st 8 Yo-Yo Da ($49-$11)
2nd 2 Pakistan Baby ($14)
3rd 1 Speedy Achiever ($5.10)
4th 4 Amazing Feeling
Forecast $78.
Place Forecast (2-8) $25, (1-8) $7, (1-2) $10.
Tierce $417.
Trio $54.
Quartet $1245.
Quadro $42.
RACE 5
1st 1 Super Sprinter ($33-$9)
2nd 9 Happy And Healthy ($16)
3rd 10 Travel Ambassador ($10)
4th 3 Works Of Art
Forecast $88.
Place Forecast (1-9) $16, (1-10) $12, (9-10) $20.
Tierce $655.
Trio $84.
Quartet $1115.
Quadro $37.
RACE 6
1st 7 Sharp Sailor ($78-$20)
2nd 1 Prawn Baba ($8)
3rd 10 Victory Boys ($7)
4th 4 Happy Contender
Forecast $83.
Place Forecast (1-7) $29, (7-10) $19, (1-10) $7.
Tierce $783.
Trio $114.
Quartet No winner ($4792 jackpot carried forward to next race).
Quadro $194.
RACE 7
1st 5 Wonderful Journey ($28-$10)
2nd 7 Lamarosa ($19)
3rd 9 Giant Stars ($49)
4th 10 Sharp Hunter
Forecast $101.
Place Forecast (5-7) $30, (5-9) $97, (7-9) $178.
Tierce $6075.
Trio $1720.
Quartet No winner ($12212 jackpot carried forward to next race).
Quadro $5092.
RACE 8
1st 2 Country Melody ($26-$10)
2nd 12 Super Turbo ($7)
3rd 8 Verbinsky ($9)
4th 9 Back In Black
Forecast $24.
Place Forecast (2-12) $9, (2-8) $13, (8-12) $7.
Tierce $284.
Trio $56.
Quartet $6545.
Quadro $98.
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