Blinkers on for Aegon in Gr.1 FWD Champions Mile

[Wandering Eyes]

FWD Champions Day on Sunday (30 April) looms as an important milestone for talented New Zealand trainer Andrew Forsman who will saddle his first international runner outside Australasia when Aegon (NZ) (Sacred Falls) tackles the best Hong Kong has to offer in the HK$20 million Gr.1 FWD Champions Mile (1600m) at Sha Tin.

Group One-winning Aegon’s Sha Tin tilt will come exactly one year since 40-year-old Forsman became a solo trainer after his mentor and training partner of a decade, famed New Zealander Murray Baker, retired – on 30 April last year.

Forsman part-owns Gr.1 New Zealand Guineas (1600m) winner Aegon, which he selected at the Karaka Yearling Sales, with the Zame family and says while he has been to a couple of international meetings, he has never raced a horse in Hong Kong.

“It’s great to be part of it,” Forsman said.

“Aegon is certainly going into a different environment on a long ‘prep’ and does seem at a bit of a disadvantage but he is pretty well travelled and laidback and it looks like he has settled in quite well but it’s only early days.”

Of his sixth races this preparation which netted a Group Three win in the Gr.3 Moonga Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield in October and a narrow second in the Gr.1 Captain Cook Stakes (1600m) back in New Zealand in December, the five-year-old’s last race was in the lucrative All-Star Mile (1600m) at what can be a tricky Moonee Valley track in March but the result was perplexing for Forsman.

“We really don’t know what to make of that and whether it was The Valley that tricked him up, we are not really sure,” Forsman said of Aegon’s ninth of 15th placing in the race.

“But he has come through it really well and had a good jump-out at Flemington and we put the blinkers on him which is something we’ve always wanted to do but just haven’t had the right opportunity.”

And while Forsman has engaged Australia’s premier jockey, New Zealand expatriate James McDonald, he said the only negative is that it will be the star’s first ride on the gelding.

“But he is pretty straight forward and it will be a small field and you just hope by putting the blinkers on it switches him on and he gets him to travel at that important part of the race,” he said.

“Unfortunately, he tends to get back a little bit and that’s probably why we opted to go to Hong Kong rather than a big field in the Doncaster.

“With a smaller field the logic is that if he can draw well, he won’t be too far off them even if he is a little bit slowly away.

“Hopefully he can be positive and take a position that he hasn’t probably been able to do in his last couple of starts.”

After winning his first five races – including a Group 2 at his second start and a Group 1 at his third outing – Forsman said Aegon had never had any where to hide with such high ratings which have been difficult as an older horse.

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