No more just a 'kampung' rider

Wong Chin Chuen has always been one of the most promising homegrown talents in the Kranji riding ranks, but he seems to have just gone to another level this year.

The fourth spot on the premiership is testament to the way the boyish-looking former Penang-based rider has come into his own, but there is more to it than meets the eye.

Besides the swagger, there is also a new riding technique in his arsenal - the Australian style.

Since the end of last season, Wong has often been seen wielding the whip in the old-school windmill fashion from Down Under. It was something which the "kampung-style" rider, as he said self-deprecatingly, had never used before.

From his treble on Saturday, Dancing Tycoon was the one seen copping more than a few tastes of his persuader inside the last 200m.

Wong could have been a ringer for Danny Beasley or even Mick Dittman, the Australian hoop known as "The Enforcer" for his power-packed rides of yesteryear, and who is now the Lim's Stable's racing manager.

Knockers may scoff and call Wong a copycat, but to him, there is method in the madness.

He is not breaking new ground, anyway. Benny Woodworth is a master at switching between continental and antipodean style.

"I try to adapt to the situation. For some horses, you have to continue to encourage them," said Wong.

"I feel it suits certain horses who are 'thinkers' like Dancing Tycoon. By using the whip like the Aussies, I keep him focused and keep him going.

"The blinkers also helped him as he tends to feel lost when he sees daylight.

"Entertainer is another horse who gives his best when ridden this way, but it doesn't suit every horse. I will then switch to my old style, 'kampung-style'.

"But seriously, mine is more American, but I've learnt I had to adapt if I want to get the best from all sorts of horses."

Interestingly, and as a measure of his level of dedication to his craft, Wong is quite the self-made man in his bid to widen his repertoire of skills.

"I watch TV replays of other Australian jockeys like Zac Purton in Hong Kong and Danny Beasley," he said.

"But it's easier to learn by watching Danny as he's here at the same track. I never ask him, though I just see with my own eyes how he does it and I practise."

Practice has indeed made Wong perfect.

A raw diamond when he moved down south as a young apprentice in 2015, Jimmy - as he is better known - has known the ups and downs of racing.

After two Singapore junior titles in 2016 and 2017, rides dried up with the loss of his apprentice claim in 2019. Then he missed half a season when stranded in Johor Baru through Covid-19.

Luckily, that gift in the saddle was not wasted in selling insurance. When the Malaysian borders reopened, he returned, and did not take long to bounce back to the Kranji winner's circle.

After finishing third last year - granted, helped by the shortage of jockeys after many expats left during those pandemic times - Wong has continued to win races by the spades.

Australian, kampung or Gangnam style, Wong - who first honed his craft under Dr Tan Swee Hock, Kranji trainer Tan Kah Soon's father - said it was the horsepower that was the real clincher.

"At least we must try new things, do a bit of homework and improve ourselves," he said.

"But at the end of the day, the whip can only do so much, it's the opportunities you get that matter."

The popular rider sits out one only of the 11-race programme this Saturday. Sure Will Do in the $70,000 Class 3 race over 1,400m is one who is unlikely to get "too much stick" from Wong.

"The problem with Sure Will Do is he's a jump-and-go type, so I have to settle him all the time as he bled at his previous start," he said of the Per Incanto five-year-old.

"I was very happy with his last run. There was a genuine tempo and he was easy to settle.

"Hopefully, he gets the same pace on Saturday, but he'll be at his first time over 1,400m, and he's also drawn 14, which may make it difficult for him to settle.

"I'll have to come back before I can cut across, but at the end of the day, Stephen Gray will tell me how to ride him."