Blinkers on Voyage Warrior

[Wandering Eyes]

Hopeful of getting Voyage Warrior (Declaration of War) to find another ‘gear’, trainer Ricky Yiu has applied the blinkers in a bid to unlock more from the chestnut’s reserves when he contests Friday’s Gr.3 National Day Cup Handicap (1000m) at Sha Tin.  

“Hopefully the blinkers can put another ‘gear’ into him, one more gear, he’s never worn them, so this is the first time to sharpen him up and make him focus more,” Yiu said.

“We’ll go forward for the speed in this race,” he said. Adopting a hard and fast approach, Yiu is looking to keep things simple with an effective method that has previously proven successful for his charge down the straight.

“He carries a decent weight, he knows the game and he knows the straight course so we’re making it simple,” the handler said of the four-time course and distance winner.

The now 105-rater still holds the Class 3 1000m course record at Sha Tin, stopping the clock at 54.89s in April, 2019 at only his second start – three seasons ago – but Friday will be his first run down the straight since January, 2020.

The winner of three out of his first four starts, the speedster added two more wins to his haul in his second campaign, including the 2020 Gr.2 Sprint Cup (1200m) but has been winless since then.

“Ruan Maia will ride him,” Yiu said. Maia drove Voyage Warrior to a solid fourth in April’s Gr.1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m).

“He’s one of the exceptions for his sire, he has plenty of speed being by Declaration Of War,” Yiu said in reference to Declaration Of War’s record at stud, having sired winners of the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m), Gr.1 Queensland Oaks (2400m), Gr.1 Victoria Derby (2500m) and Gr.1 Belmont Derby (2000m).

“He’s done well at Conghua and this is a fairly good option for him to start with,” Yiu said.

The Australian-bred tuned up with a first-past-the-post effort at Conghua over 1000m in a barrier trial on the grass, finishing a nose ahead of Computer Patch (Exceed and Excel), who he meets again this Friday.

Voyage Warrior was sold as a yearling at the 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock Yearling Sales and purchased by The Robt Dawe Agency for $55,000. He returned later that year in the draft of JK Farm at the Ready To Run Sale and was knocked down to Yiu for $280,000.

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