Racing: Tapildo up against globetrotters

By PAUL GUEORGIEFF

SINGAPORE - Former New Zealand trainer Laurie Laxon does not take kindly to suggestions his filly Tapildo is making up the numbers for tomorrow night's $S3 million ($3.9 million) Singapore International Cup.

That was clearly spelled out when he was asked whether the race was something of an afterthought.

Laxon's response was it was the sort of question that "makes me wild".

Tapildo was last week confirmed as a starter after withdrawals.

Tapildo, part-owned by Laxon, won the $250,000 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) for three-year-old fillies at Trentham when trained by Laxon's Waikato-based wife Sheila.

Tapildo has not raced for three months and only arrived in Singapore on March 3. Laxon concedes that makes for a tall order approaching the race.

"Of course it is. But she's one of 10 in the world to make the race."

Under the weight-for-age scale of the race Tapildo will carry 53kg and Laxon feels that, combined with the talents of former New Zealand jockey Eddie Wilkinson, she should run the 2000m strongly.

Producing a horse to win first-up not long after arriving in Singapore is something Laxon is already renowned for.

Earlier this year he won a 1200m race with a horse that had only been in Singapore for 33 days.

Laxon said the same assignment with Tapildo was much tougher because she was tackling a middle distance, but Saturday would be the 70th day since the horse arrived.

"I have needed the extra time but I haven't missed a day with her and she's taken all the pressure I can put on her like an older horse," he said.

The favourites will be French globetrotter Jim And Tonic and his latest conqueror Silvano, of Germany.

Jim And Tonic has been a marvel. The six-year-old has won three major races in Hong Kong and was second in last year's inaugural Singapore International Cup.

Silvano is another who has been campaigning on the international circuit with great success.

He was a 5 1/2 length runaway winner of the Singapore Gold Cup (2000m) in March and at his last start on April 22 won the Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2000m) in Hong Kong. On the latter occasion Jim And Tonic was 1 3/4 lengths away second.

Singapore's champion trainer Malcolm Thwaites has high hopes for Our Aristotle, who was a $S2.5 million purchase from Ireland last year.

The Sadler's Wells four-year-old colt has had four starts for Thwaites, winning first-up in January and finishing third to Silvano in the Singapore Gold Cup in March.

He was beaten by nearly 13 lengths in the gold cup but Thwaites said the horse was now much improved.

- NZPA