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Date Posted: 21:32:06 11/19/07 Mon
Author: Odabu
Subject: 製造氣氛?!?!?!

Kingdom is a class act but Andretti is better, insists trainer Freedman

MURRAY BELL

Lee Freedman, the trainer of champion Australian filly Miss Andretti, has publicly questioned the ability of Hong Kong's new star sprinter Sacred Kingdom to repeat Saturday's stunning Sprint Trial win at Sha Tin in three weeks time.

Freedman rushed home from attending his horses to watch Sacred Kingdom decimate his Cathay Pacific International Sprint Trial rivals in course record time, and admitted to being very impressed.

"It was some race wasn't it?" Freedman said. "Sacred Kingdom is obviously an outstanding sprinter. I'm perhaps not so concerned about the fact that he broke the track record on his own because that track record has been broken four times in the past year, so the actual time wasn't something that I'm taking too big a interest in.

"But it was an emphatic win and he beat some very good horses in runaway fashion. When the race finished I took a deep breath and I said so to those around me: `Well, it appears we are going to get each-way odds [4-1 or better] about Miss Andretti' which after all is pretty amazing."

Freedman is a past master at the art of peaking a horse on the right day, and openly questioned whether Sacred Kingdom might have reached his personal best one run too early. "Look I thought he was fantastic," the champion trainer continued. "But, can he maintain that type of form? Can he repeat that performance in three weeks time? I know there is some improvement in Miss Andretti [since her win at Flemington on December 10] but is there any improvement in Sacred Kingdom? Did he peak on Saturday?"

Freedman had a totally positive report on Miss Andretti since she moved into quarantine at Sandown a week ago in preparation for her assault on the HK$12 million Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint.

"The boys looking after her have said she has settled in really well which is no surprise because she is pretty bombproof. She just gets on with the job. She's been that way ever since we got her," Freedman said.

The only obvious negative for Miss Andretti is that all her racing has been either left-handed or on a straight track - she has never raced the right-handed direction she will encounter at Sha Tin.

But Freedman said he has been working her right-handed every day at Sandown.

"So far she has only done slow work right-handed at Sandown but one good thing about her being quarantined at the track is that we can do all her work right-handed and [today] I'll go down and see how she works a bit faster around the turns. Nothing flash, she'll just run home the last bit."

The clash between Sacred Kingdom, defending titleholder Absolute Champion and Miss Andretti will be a highlight of the Jockey Club's turf world championships day on December 9. The Aussie mare has now won 19 of her 28 starts, including the King's Stand Stakes in June.

After watching Sacred Kingdom's win Freedman was asked the obvious question: Do you think she can beat Sacred Kingdom next month?

His answer: an emphatic "Yes!"

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