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'This is what I am here for'

New-face Beuzelin loves Singapore, hopes Universal Empire is the start of many winners in his Kranji stint

There seems to be a common trend with visiting jockeys at Kranji of late.

Only earlier in the month, Australian jockey Patrick Moloney and his New Zealand counterpart Alysha Collett won on their second day of riding at Kranji.

Moloney, here on a one-month stint, scored with Diamond Ring, while Collett, who is back for a second contract after suffering a serious back injury in a race fall last October, was successful on Bluestone.

Now, new kid on the Kranji block Louis-Philippe Beuzelin has followed suit - riding a winner on his second day at the office aboard Universal Empire in the $75,000 Twickenham 2016 & 2017 Stakes, a Restricted Maiden race over 1,000m on the Polytrack.

The other similarity is that the Frenchman also had three rides on his first day but did not win. He was third on Lucky Tiger and Majestic Empress.

Moloney scored on his first ride on the second day, while Collett was at her fifth.

Universal Empire was Beuzelin's first nominated ride on Sunday in Race 2, but he hopped on a chance mount in the opener, replacing John Powell on My Miracle. But the combination finished unplaced.

The Barbadian-raised rider's strong vigorous style in getting the Alwin Tan-trained Universal Empire to score by 11/4 lengths certainly drew nods of approval all round.

Race-caller Nicholas Child wondered aloud if Beuzelin would perform the flying dismount, made famous by one of his mentors, the effervescent Frankie Dettori, at the winner's enclosure. But he did not.

"Don't want to get a fine," he said with a laugh.

In Cloud Nine, he certainly was. The 28-year-old jockey kept smiling as if he had just struck a lottery.

"This is brilliant. I love the place, I love Singapore," he said at his first Kranji post-race interview.

"Hopefully, there will be more winners after this one. This is what I'm here for."

Boasting other famous names from European/English horse racing as his mentors, namely fellow Barbadian Sir Michael Stoute and champion jockey Ryan Moore, Beuzelin could be in for a good time at his new hunting ground.

He is licensed to ride at Kranji until the end of the year.

A globetrotting winner of over 300 races in France, Barbados, America, Europe and India - among others - Beuzelin probably had that new feather to his international cap sealed when he decided to utilise Universal Empire's natural speed to take up the running from an outside gate.

He later said that even though the Moshe colt could not cut back onto the rail and had to face the breeze throughout, leading was better than being one of the followers in the race.

In the home straight, Universal Empire, who also had Beer Garden on his outside and keeping him as the meat in the sandwich, resolutely went for broke at the 300m mark.

Beer Garden, ridden by apprentice jockey Joseph See, who broke the duck on Friday night with Basilisk, tried to tack on and peg him back. But it was to no avail.

Universal Empire stuck on gamely to open his account by 1¼ lengths.

Qiji Diamond, ridden by Kranji's leading rookie Simon Kok, was third, half a length behind Beer Garden.

The winning time was 59.75sec for the 1,000m dash.

"He's still very babyish. That's why I didn't want to bustle him up too much," said Beuzelin. "I was not worried he could not cross. He's a 1,200m horse and I knew he would still have a kick left in him.

"There was a lot of kickback out there, and we were better off in front. He did it nicely, even if he was waiting for the others, and was begging for the line in the end.

Previously known as Back To Life in Australia before being renamed by his new owner, Chen Chong Whay, in Singapore, Universal Empire ran fourth in his first two starts.

HORSE RACING