Speedy Samurai in slashing trial form
Leading trainer Lim’s trio of newcomers also catch the eye
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Speedy Samurai has not saluted the judge again since his only win from 11 starts, second-up in Ipoh on July 13, 2025. A sparkling barrier trial win at Sungai Besi on April 28 suggests he may have found his winning flair again.
PHOTO: SELANGOR TURF CLUB
Brian Miller
Speedy Samurai’s last start on March 28 was everything his connections dreaded.
He was one of the favourites in that Class 5A sprint over the 1,275m at Sungai Besi. He was sent off as the third pick in a 12-horse affair.
But their expectations fell flat when Speedy Samurai messed up the start and dropped back into last spot.
He did not make up ground and stayed last for the entire trip and, as expected, the Racing Stewards deemed he had to pass one starting stall test before he was allowed to race again.
On the morning of April 28, the Winson Cheng Han Yong-trained galloper showed up in the second of six trials run off that day.
From gate 3 in that six-horse 1,000m sprint, Speedy Samurai was a different horse altogether.
If anything, he lived up to his name and turned out to be mighty speedy out of the gates. His rivals tried their utmost to reel him in but he would have none of it.
On a track rated “good”, the Ten Sovereigns four-year-old kept them at bay and, with the finish in sight, he held off a challenge from Good Sort to run home a winner by 2½ lengths in 59.84sec.
Speedy Samurai is better than what he showed at the last-start debacle. On his trial, he can make amends at the races on May 3.
He is entered for the Class 5A contest over the 1,300m and, if he manages to carry that trial-test form into Sunday’s action, a second win might be in the offing at his 12th race start in Malaysia.
Good Sort (Kaidan Brewer), who slotted into that second spot after being well up with the pace, does look like his name implies.
Prepared by Simon Dunderdale, Good Sort is a Tassort mare who did her early racing in Australia, where she raced 11 times for a win in a two-year-old fillies race (1,250m) at Canterbury on June 19, 2024.
On the strength of her trial – her first in Malaysia – the four-year-old does look like she could have a future in her adopted country.
Another good winner on the day was No More Delay, who, like Speedy Samurai, was having a test which was ordered by the club’s vets. He was found to be lame (off fore) before his last start on April 11.
These issues are clearly “no more”. With Lukman Mohd up, the son of Zoustar led from start to finish, clocking the fastest time of 59.46sec for the morning.
A seven-year-old veteran with six wins from 39 starts, he still has loads of racing left in those legs of his. A seventh win in the near future would not surprise.
Trainer Johnny Lim Boon Thong, who currently tops the standings on 27 wins, had four runners in the third trial of the morning and he made the numbers count.
His gallopers were all having their Official Race Trials and took the first three spots with Never Give An Inch (Nuqman Rozi) leading the pack home in 1min 0.36sec.
A three-year-old American-bred by Instagrand, Never Give An Inch took up residence in Lim’s yard on Oct 13, 2025.
Silver Silver (Johari Kamaruddin) dropped in for second while Bid And Bet (Farhan Ghazali) took third. The fourth runner, an unnamed Catholic Boy three-year-old, ran last.
Now cleared for racing, the three Lim stablemates should not take long to be seen in action.
