24 October 2025, Kuala Lumpur

In a drastic turn of events at the Selangor Turf Club — from no races last weekend to 25 races spread across Saturday and Sunday — it should make for a great weekend of racing for all patrons. Saturday’s meeting will host 13 races on the program, with the first race off at 12:10 p.m. local time. However, punters should take into account that there has been a fair share of rain over the last few days, and with more rain expected on Saturday, the track could potentially be on the softer side.

Saturday’s raceday is potentially more open than Sunday’s card, but nonetheless, two horses stand out on the day — the first being Santino in Race 3. The S. Dunderdale-trained runner is now having his fifth start in the country but, more importantly, is dropping back to Class 5 level. Replays of his recent outings will show his ability to finish off his races really well from off the speed, but from a wide draw and over the minimum trip on Saturday, it won’t be easy. Other than Digging Eight, the field does not have consistent early speed, which could map in Santino’s favour if ridden positively. However, he doesn’t have the best gate speed, which is a concern on Track 2. He is certainly the class horse in the field, and with luck in running, he should be the horse to beat.

The second standout, and arguably the standout for the weekend, is Fright in Race 7. He’s hit the ground running in Malaysia, with three wins from three starts and a combined winning margin of over 14 lengths. C. K. Khaw retains the ride as he has ridden him on all three previous attempts for S. Dunderdale. This is his toughest task to date, with Stop The Water being the biggest danger as he drops in class.

Sunday’s meeting features two major races — the Safar Gemilang Cup and the Safar247 Asia Pacific Cup. But before the feature races, the best bet comes in Race 7 with Pacific Vampire stepping out over 1100m for the J. Ong stable. It’s been a little over two months since his last win, but the way he trialled with the blinkers on for the first time last week certainly suggests he’s close to winning again. His second-place finish in his last start, when beaten by Bransom, was full of merit from Barrier 9. But this time round, Pacific Vampire is drawn in Barrier 3, where Bransom is drawn out in Barrier 11. P. H. Seow retains the ride and should be the leader as per his customary running style, and I believe he will be able to go from start to finish in front. 

The RM80,000 Safar Gemilang Cup takes place in Race 8, and Irish Goodbye, from the L. Moy stable, looks like the horse they all have to beat. A win on his debut certainly caught the eye when winning by 2.75 lengths, and with a quiet trial in between that last start, he looks prepped to run a big race this weekend and should be hard to beat. S. Uzair retains the ride from Barrier 5, and this Brazilian-bred gelding by Setembro Chove could have a lot of scope for further improvement in the country.

The second of the feature races is the Safar247 Asia Pacific Cup over 1800m in Race 10. A small but quality field of six runners will face the starter, and it will certainly come down to tactics in this race. In a field that lacks any sort of speed, potentially Berry Bliss or Always A Gentleman look to be the front-runners, as Good Star lacks early speed and usually comes from off the pace. However, he is still my first selection after beating Latin Legend in the Merdeka Cup last month. He has yet to run outside the first three in six local starts and has finished second to Lucky Magic in the past, as well as third to Duma, who came out to finish second in the NZB Ready To Run Open Championship two weeks ago. With that sort of form to his name, he should be the horse to beat — but don’t be surprised if Always A Gentleman can pull off the upset, as he’s peaking third-up now and stepping up to an ideal distance.

An open weekend of racing is expected, but it should make for some exciting viewing and plenty of value on offer.

Devon Pretorius