Leading trainer Michael Clements is trusting his own judgement when he tipped that the Singapore Gold Cup won’t be a bridge too far for Kranji’s only South African-bred at the moment, Tangible, but whether he is good enough to make the cut come November is another issue altogether.
The well-travelled seven-year-old somehow tended to cut his teeth in sprint contests in the early stages of his racing careers in South Africa, Hong Kong, and even Singapore. Besides, the only race the son of Trippi known as Cot Campbell in South Africa ever won before was in a 1200m race at Kenilworth in 2017.
When his previous handlers Justin Snaith (South Africa) and Tony Millard (Hong Kong) stepped him up in distance, he ran creditably without winning.
Clements didn't really need to follow the same blueprint as his esteemed colleagues to see that inclination towards longer trips. Ironically, the Zimbabwean-born conditioner didn't even look up a breeding which was closer to his first home (he is now a naturalised Singaporean citizen) either.
"To be honest, I'm not sure about his breeding. I've been away from Zimbabwe or South Africa for so long, and furthermore, we can't buy horses from South Africa," said the former two-time Zimbabwean champion trainer who, in 1998, moved to Singapore where he notched his first champion trainer title last year.
"I'm more familiar with the Australian and New Zealand breeding now, but I was told his genes are more sprinter-miler on both his sire (Trippi) and dam (Ebony Flyer) side."
It would seem Clements and the Lucky Stable have found themselves a regally-bred customer.
US-bred stallion Trippi is a former South African Equus Champion sire who won seven races from 1200m to 1800m, including five at Grade level, and Ebony Flyer (x Jet Master) was no slouch as a racehorse either, being a three-time Group 1 winner in South Africa, including the 2010 Cape Fillies Guineas (1600m).
"From what he shows us in training, though, the 1800m to 2000m should be no problem for him," said Clements who, clearly, would rather go with "tangible" evidence on the tracks rather than worrying about nicks and crosses.
"His first runs were in sprints, but since we stepped him up over ground, his form has been good. He obviously has been looking for more ground, and as he rose from Class 4 to Class 3, he showed he was very competitive.
"On paper, we should look at a handicap race like the Gold Cup for him, but he still needs at least two wins under the belt to reach a rating where he can get in.
"In saying this, we also need him to strike the right balance at the weights to qualify - earn enough points but also get in at as light a weight as possible."
For a start, Tangible could look at earning some miles towards the $1 million Group 1 2000m showpiece on November 14 in this Sunday's humbler $70,000 Kranji Stakes C race over the Polytrack mile.
"Tangible is effective on both turf and Polytrack, even if he won his only race on Polytrack (three starts back in a Class 4 race over 1700m on June 12)," said Clements.
"This Sunday's race is also an ideal type of race for him. Sometimes, Polytrack races are weaker than turf races.
"Shafrizal (Saleh) will ride him. He got a big result on him before, a second place (beaten a short head by Savvy Command in a Class 3 race over the turf mile on July 3).
"The horse is fit and well. He galloped today and had an easy gallop at the end of last week, so I'm pretty happy with his condition going into Sunday's race."
