BARBARIAN GOES SWIFTLY, LOOKS SET FOR NINTH GONG

Former Kranji gallopers The Star and Jewel Sixty-One also sparkle in training gallops

- Brian Miller

On a Kuala Lumpur track rated good, several horses involved in the seven races to be held on Nov 2 recorded smart times in their training gallops on Oct 29.

Impressive among them were The Star, Barbarian and Jewel Sixty-One.

From Lawson Moy's yard, The Star ran out the 600m in 38.3sec.

Not to be outdone, Jewel Sixty-One disposed of the same distance in 38.6sec.

However, the swiftest of the lot turned out to be Barbarian.

From the yard of Ananthen Kuppan, the eight-year-old Redoute's Choice gelding returned 37.4sec.

A veteran with 62 race starts under his girth, Barbarian will be involved in the Class 4B sprint over the 1,400m.

While a victory will not come gift-wrapped, he does appear to be a good thing at the weights, having to carry just 53.5kg in that 10-horse field.

The General, who also worked nicely when running the 600m in 38.4sec, could be the main danger.

But the American Pharoah five-year-old, a two-time winner from nine starts, will have to do the job with 56.5kg on his back and, when push comes to shove, the pull in weights may just favour Barbarian.

Already an eight-time winner, Barbarian last won over the Kuala Lumpur 1,200m on June 23.