Antipodean eyes second Gold Cup

Fresh from his foray in Ipoh on March 22 when he landed the much-hallowed Group 1 Perak Derby (2,000m) with Guru Fight, trainer Simon Dunderdale could be looking at another big prize, albeit in Kuala Lumpur this time.

He is well-equipped to call the shots when the Group 1 Equine Sanctuary Tunku Gold Cup worth RM300,000 (S$97,300) takes place at Sungai Besi on March 29.

With four runners – Antipodean, Bransom, Mega Ace and Thunderous (second emergency acceptor) – seemingly ready to do battle over the Selangor 1,200m, the New Zealand handler should start laying out his Sunday best for what could be another photo-taking session beneath that hallowed arch.

Racegoers at the trackside for the morning gallops on March 24 got a glimpse of the treasures in Dunderdale’s yard.

Among them, the highest-rated Antipodean (110) was out for a morning gallop and the son of Derryn impressed many when he turned did the trip in 37.5sec.

While the Cup’s trip is as short as he would like, Antipodean can be counted upon to turn on the charm.

Dunderdale, now sitting on top of the Malaysian trainers’ log with Johnny Lim Boon Thong on 14 wins each, appears to have mapped out a nice lead-up for his champion galloper.

Twice already in the new season, he has sent the 2024 Group 1 Selangor Gold Cup (1,600m) winner to the trials.

Both times, the 12-time winner kept the heroics to the minimum by restricting himself to some easy galloping.

Sandwiched between the trials was his solitary run for 2026. That was a Metro A event (1,300m) on Feb 22, and Antipodean finished fourth behind his nemesis, Pacific Vampire.

The five-year-old New Zealand-bred has won from 1,100m to 1,600m, and Dunderdale must be quietly confident of doing the Derby-Gold Cup double.

As the Gold Cup is a handicap race, Dunderdale has a lightweight galloper who could inflict some serious damage on the reputation of the established stars.

He is Mega Ace. The son of Earthlight too was out on the training track where he ran the 600m in 36sec. That, after a spot of cantering.

A three-year-old who has already posted four wins over 1,020m and 1,200m from just six starts, Mega Ace gets into the Cup picture with just 52kg on his back.

Being the out-and-out sprinter that we know he is, we can expect to see him lead the field on a merry chase.

Hunting him down will be the likes of Yes Man and Duma.

A star in trainer Tiang Kim Choi’s yard, Yes Man would have earned some nods of approval when he easily disposed of the 600m in 35.5sec, with Shafiq Rizuan in the saddle.

The Yes Yes Yes four-year-old gets into the feature race on the back of a five-length win in a Supreme A contest (1,100m) on Jan 3.

All his eight wins going back to October 2024 have all been over the sprint trips and owner Yee Kin Kong will be looking for another all-the-way show from his runner.

Another one who could upset the apple cart could be Duma.

The Frank Maynard-trained four-year-old had Ruzaini Supien doing the steering when he ran the 600m in an easy 39.7sec.

Duma was a last-start winner on Feb 18.

That day, the son of Too Darn Hot came from deep in midfield to beat his Class 3 rivals over the 1,200m.

Like Mega Ace, he too will have a pull in the weights, having to carry the feather load of 52kg.

Owned by the RC Stable, Duma has been sent out to the races 13 times since Jan 19, 2025, and the New Zealand-bred has won five times and finished second on four other occasions.

If anything, he will make the Tunku Gold Cup mighty exciting.

brian@sph.com.sg