Singapore’s Emperor Max ready for #ChampionsDay test

Peter Hutton, a London-born former jockey who now acts as assistant to Singapore trainer Stephen Gray, gives the latest lowdown on Singapore sprinting star Emperor Max.

Hutton flew over with Emperor Max, arriving at his temporary home in Newmarket late on Saturday night (October 3^rd), and will be overseeing the gelding’s preparations in advance of him becoming the first non-European runner at QIPCO British Champions Day when he contests the Group 1 £600,000 QIPCO British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot on Saturday October 17^th.

Max just keeps thriving, he loves it here and has really perked up in his new environment. This colder weather has got him on his toes and it seems to be bothering Stephen [Gray] and I more than the horse as we keep having to check the temperature and work out what rugs to put on him.

It’s a bit different from Singapore, where the smoke season, caused by the burning of crops in Indonesia, has been with us for a month or more. It’s been really bad this year, you can smell and taste smoke all the time and at one stage I couldn’t see from one side of Kranji Racecourse to the other.

We are not entirely sure how he will react to the big race atmosphere on Saturday and in the race he needs a target to run at, so one of our biggest fears is him hitting the front too soon. We would prefer good ground but he should like good to soft.

EMPEROR MAX is ready to go ahead of #ChampionsDay! Watch out Muhaarar! https://t.co/612fhl9kDw

— Champions Series (@ChampionsSeries) October 15, 2015

Stephen and Corey [Brown, his Melbourne Cup-winning Australian jockey] will walk the course on Friday and make a plan. If he could finish in the top five, that would be great.

Since I left Britain in 1991 I’ve worked for some of the top trainers in America, Bob Baffert and Wayne Lukas, not to mention a spell in Saudi Arabia with Jerry Barton. I’ve been involved with three Kentucky Derby winners and took Silver Charm to the Dubai when he won World Cup in 1998.

But to be back in Newmarket, where it all started for me with a summer holiday job for Michael Jarvis back in 1984, has been surreal. I haven’t really had a chance to look up old friends because the trip has been all about Max, I’ve had to be professional. But my mother’s just come up to see me and it’s been the first time that we’ve met for 12 years.