Lord's leaping back in Command

Third-season trainer Richard Lim is keen to see more wins out of Lord's Command - but not more runs.

After the Shalaa four-year-old atoned for his last two defeats with a return to winning ways in the $70,000 Class 3 race (1,100m) on Jan 6, the former jockey got the definitive answer on where he went wrong the last time.

"He was a bit scratchy after he pulled up from his last race. So, I gave him a spell to freshen him up," he said.

"He trialled good, he was okay, even if he's not as good as before. But he did win. That's what matters.

"There is not much racing for him, we'll see how he pulls up. The key to him is to space his runs."

Lord's Command certainly began his Singapore campaign on the right foot with a two-from-two, three weeks apart in the months of August and September, 2023.

But he tasted his first defeat when backed up within a fortnight of his second consecutive win.

The short-priced favourite looked home and hosed when he came off his box seat to sweep past the wilting Darc Bounty, but staggered late before getting rolled by the fast-finishing Renzo.

In hindsight, Lim and Manoel Nunes felt they may have erred in rushing him back to the races.

A six-week layoff ensued, but the Class 3 race (1,200m) proved inconclusive as he copped a check to finish out of the placings for the first time.

To give himself no room for any doubt this time, Lim stretched the wait to two months before pushing the reset button.

The $70,000 Class 3 race (1,100m) on Jan 6 came up at the perfect interval.

But it was the physical space itself that was actually in short supply for the speedy gelding during the early sectionals of his first 2024 outing.

For a horse who usually races in the first few, he looked in a spot of bother when caught four wide without much room to tuck in for the first 300m.

But once the early speed sorted itself out, Nunes, who was aboard at Lord's Command's first two wins, was able to drop him in behind Win Win (Amirul Ismadi) and Bransom (Matthew Kellady).

Finding that window to catch his breath proved to be the winning move.

Into the straight, the $14 favourite easily levelled up with the two leaders before going full bore towards the winning post.

His nemesis from two runs back, Renzo (Vlad Duric), came with a wet sail on the outside at the 200m, but hit a brickwall late. The Argentinian-bred lunged but missed out by a neck from Lord's Command.

Reignite (Jamil Sarwi) finished third, another 3/4 lengths away.

The feedback of keeping plenty of gaps between runs actually came from the person in the irons.

"He's a late-maturing sort. He's not fully mature yet. I told Richard and (assistant trainer) Joe (D'Zulkifliy) not to run him too often," said Nunes.

"He was fitter today and I was happy where he was behind the speed. He was in a lovely spot and was relaxed throughout. He was still looking around in the straight, he's still green.

"But, as long as we keep him fresh, he should be able to win more races here."

The Brazilian ace, for one, knows how to do just that. He won the most races at Kranji for the fifth time in 2023, spacing his rivals from a long way out.

A four-timer on the first day of the 2024 season could not have been a better way to kickstart his title defence.

With half of the haul coming for Lim, as well as providing the Penang-born Singaporean trainer with a first feature success, courtesy of Super Salute in the $110,000 Group 3 New Year Cup (1,200m), the Lim-Nunes duo may well be the team to watch in 2024.

Super Salute also capped Lim's red-letter day with a training treble. The first leg, The Shadow (Marc Lerner, $25) was the inaugural 2024 winner in the opener.

manyan@sph.com.sg