Bayliss lands Rocket Star ride

Jake Bayliss has been booked as Rocket Star's new partner for the Kranji Mile.

They had one of their first public sightings at the Thursday barrier trials, where Ricardo Le Grange's chestnut closed off nicely for second under the young Australian jockey.

Bayliss said he was offered the plum ride around six weeks ago, after Le Grange upgraded Rocket Star's previous rider Manoel Nunes to the job on his first Kranji Mile hope, Katak.

"I was engaged to ride Rocket Star in the Kranji Mile around six weeks ago, as a jockey had to be quickly secured given Manoel was committed to Katak," said Bayliss.

"Rocket Star has already shown what he can do, his record speaks for itself. He has worked nicely off a gallop, it was my first sit on him in a trial.

"That trial has given me great confidence, especially from the way he made ground on a good horse like Lucky Jinsha. He still had something left in the boot.

"I believe Ricardo will skip the 1,400m race next week and go straight to the Kranji Mile. He's definitely a live hope."

Bayliss' selection on the Star Witness five-year-old does not really surprise, as he was probably the best pre-qualifier around.

Two of his four Singapore wins have been registered for Le Grange and the same Filipino owner Paolo Mendoza, who also races Rocket Ryane and Leatherhead.

Rocket Star is by far a higher -profile booking, the highest since he was granted a one-year licence by the Singapore Turf Club from the start of the year.

It is a ringing endorsement that Bayliss is lapping up, especially as he was a little concerned a recent two-week suspension for careless riding had been a bit of a speed bump.

"My suspension soured the note. It stopped my momentum," said the former Queensland-based jockey, who, from Day 1, had signalled his clear intentions of not playing a bit part during his new one-year tenure.

"I was getting eight rides a week, but it's dropped a little after the suspension. For example this Saturday, I got only five rides, even if they are five nice rides.

"I don't mind small but quality bookings, but I'm still looking forward to getting back to eight to 10 rides. Hopefully it will not be for any much longer.

"For that to happen, I have to keep the momentum going, no more stops."

A winner of more than 350 races, mostly in Australia and New Zealand - including three at Group 1 level during a short New Zealand stint in 2018 and 2019 - Bayliss intends to beef up his Singapore resume.

"My main targets here are to ride 20 to 30 winners, finish in the top five and ride a Group winner," said the Queensland-born rider.

"I was on the backfoot when I lost eight to 10 meetings in the early part of the year due to visa processing time.

"But it's still early in the season, and hopefully, I can catch up."