Leung Ho Yin, Simon's Bio
Simon is a well respected full-time thoroughbred racing commentator specializing in overseas international racing. Bringing with him a wealth of racing knowledge, Simon is the host and race caller for the overseas simulcast programme since 2008/09 season. He is currently the presenter on several racing television programmes including, ‘Racing Horizon’ and ‘Horse Racing – Results’.

Kranji Racecourse – Track Analysis (Kranji Mile Day):

Though being a level and spacious track, the Kranji Racecourse features two separate, left-handed far turns (the Short Course and the Long Course), and it remains interesting to see which configuration is in use on race day.

For the turf-only card on Kranji Mile Day, all seven races will be contested at either 1200m on the Short Course, with only a mere 400m stretch run, or 1600m on the Long Course, where runners will have 450m to battle it out from the top of the lane to the finish. As per usual at Kranji, forwardly-placed runners generally dominate over the Short Course, particularly if the going is good to firm, whereas deep closers truly need that extra stretch of ground, while navigating the Long Course, to reel in their competition.

At the 1200m marker, where fields for the Lion City Cup, a pair of Class 3 Handicaps and another Class 4 Handicap will all break from, horses will travel about 300m of backside before hitting the far turn, and outside-drawn runners will be floated wide if they cannot snatch the rail soon enough. Rather, with a full 600m run on the backstretch for featured Kranji Mile, the Singapore Guineas and the Kranji Stakes A – all staged at 1600m – runners do have plenty of time to find their choice spots, thus stall assignments bear less weight.

Reviewing the recent night meeting at Kranji on 20th May, when three of the ten races were carded on good turf over the Long Course, frontrunners or forwardly-placed horses did get a slight edge.

With incessant precipitation and occasional thunderstorms that looks to extend towards Saturday, Kranji would probably be stocked with a wet, sticky track on deck. Should the weather improves just in time, forwardly-placed runners would still continue to own the competition, particularly at sprints; yet if the rain persists, deep closers may turn the table.

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