Walker & Nunes Flying

The winners keep coming for Te Akau Singapore trainer Mark Walker - he leads the Trainers' Premiership and has this season forged a formidable bond with Singapore champion rider and Jockey Premiership leader Manuel "Manny" Nunes.

The two were at it again with yet another Kranji winner on Sunday - Sebrose who was purchased by David Ellis from the Gold Coast Sale for A$230,000.

The Singapore Tuf Club reports:

There does not seem to be a week without the Mark Walker-Manoel Nunes combination visiting the winner's circle these days and Sunday was no different when Sebrose got up at the eleventh hour to claim the $60,000 Class 4 race over 1200m.

Both leading comfortably in their respective logs, Walker and Nunes have already teamed up for 15 wins up to now, though one got away after Falcon was first past the post in a race two weeks ago, but was later disqualified to last after Nunes weighed in 0.8 kilo light.

That setback remains a sore point to Nunes (enquiry into matter to be held in due course) with every win that comes their way helping to make up for that one blemish.

“It's great to ride another winner for Mark. The stable is in good form and we've had a lot of success this year, except of course for that race I lost,” said the contrite Brazilian.

“I thought the 1200m would be too short for Sebrose as he's more of a 1400m-1600m horse. That's why I tried to ride him a little bit more handy today.

“He put himself in a nice spot but we got a bit shuffled back. I wanted to go around horses but I had nowhere to go.  I just had to ride him for luck and luckily, a gap opened up in the home straight. He quickened very well through it.”

Walker said Sebrose was a horse who was not overly big but who has strengthened up in recent months.

“He's got a bit stronger and will get better over more distance,” said the Kiwi trainer.

“He's a promising horse and the owners have been very patient with him. When you are patient, you get the rewards in the end.   He would not have had the speed to go forward today and he was well ridden by Nunes somewhere in midfield and he slowly built his way into the race.”

Sebrose ($26) did look a forlorn home after he seemed to lose his spot in midfield on the rails to drop to near last with seven and eight runners to get past, including Great Scott (Craig Newitt), who seemed to be hard to knock off his perch after he came off a wide draw to go for broke at the top of the straight.

Nunes did not panic at the back, angling Sebrose across heels at the 300m and when he found a gap to the off side of Orchard Road (Nooresh Juglall), he went for broke. Sebrose took a few seconds to find his feet, but under Nunes' persuasion, he put in the big bounds, leaping off at the 50m to defeat Great Scott by a head.

Newcomer Hydro (Michael Rodd) put the writing on the wall with an eye-catching run from near last to run third another length away. The winning time was 1min 10.65secs for the 1200m on the Short Vourse.