Classy NZ Comeback for Suppy

The Informant reports:

Shafiq Rusof has made an impressive return to New Zealand's riding ranks in the last seven weeks, capped with a Group Two victory in the recent Travis Stakes at Te Rapa.

The Malaysian-born jockey partnered Our Abbadean to victory in the fillies and mares' feature, bringing his mount with a well-timed finish to beat China Star and the front-running Nicoletta.

The Travis Stakes win made amends for the Gr. 2 Awapuni Gold Cup four weeks earlier, where Rusof was unable to make Our Abbadean's 53-kilogram weight and the winning ride was instead taken by Danielle Johnson.

“It was awesome to win the big race,” the 31-year-old told The Informant this week. “I was very happy. I really appreciate the support from the connections.”

The win was Rusof's eighth from just 28 rides since resuming his New Zealand career in early March.

All of his victories have been on horses trained by the Te Akau operation of Stephen Autridge and Jamie Richards, for whom he also guided Our Abbadean to a second placing under a big weight in the Hawke's Bay Cup and finished fourth on Handsome Rebel in the Gr. 1 Manawatu Sires' Produce Stakes.

“I've really enjoyed being back riding in New Zealand so far,” Rusof said. “It's great to work for such a strong stable, and they've given me a lot of support. But there's a lot of jockeys, so it hasn't been easy to get rides.”

Another difficulty has been with weight. While he routinely rode at 53 kilograms in Singapore, he has found it to be more of a struggle so far in New Zealand.

“It is hard, especially with the colder weather here, but I'm working on it,” he said.

The Te Akau connection has been an enduring feature of Rusof's career. His first New Zealand stint was as an apprentice to the multiple premiership winner Mark Walker, who he then accompanied to Singapore in 2010. Rusof was Walker's only staff member when he established his Kranji stable, which has subsequently earned Singapore trainers' premierships in 2015 and 2017.

Rusof's own career also took off in Singapore, riding 153 winners and earning the title of champion apprentice in 2011 and 2015. But his return to these shores came about after a decision by the Singapore Turf Club at the end of last year left his career in limbo.

“Basically, at the end of last season, the Singapore Turf Club didn't relicence Manoel Nunes, Shafiq or Oscar Chavez, they wanted to get some new jockeys in,” Walker explained on the Te Akau Racing website. “He can reapply after doing a stint in New Zealand.

“He's a gun rider and he'll be a big asset to the riding ranks in New Zealand. He's held his own against the likes of Joao Moreira, Gerald Mosse, Glen Boss, Michael Rodd, Vlad Duric. He rode a lot of winners and more than held his own against class jockeys in a very competitive environment.

“He can use the stick in both hands, rode a lot of winners for us here in Singapore, and to win two apprentice titles you've got to be a gun jock because the competition is a lot tougher than it is at home.

“To win a Singapore Gold Cup (Cooptado in 2015) for Pat Shaw, one of the greatest trainers Singapore has had, while still an apprentice just shows his class and the high esteem he was held in.

“When Pat Shaw puts you on as an apprentice in a Gold Cup and you win it, it really tells you something, and I think he's the only apprentice to win Singapore's biggest race.”

As well as the significant role that Mark Walker has played in advancing Rusof's riding career, the trainer is also responsible for the widely-used nickname “Suppy”.

“It's something that Mark started calling me when I first started working for him, and now everyone calls me Suppy,” Rusof said.

Postscript - Suppy also rode two from two for Te Akau at Waipukurau last Thursday when he won aboard Grand Ariana and Meteoric Lass