Brett Prebble was boasting that recent stable transfer Packing Whiz was ready to take on all-comers - local or otherwise - and labelled the robust miler "world class" after a barnstorming victory in yesterday's Group Two Chairman's Trophy at Sha Tin.
In his first run for Caspar Fownes, Packing Whiz dismantled a quality field, unleashing a devastating turn of foot - off what was an unsuitably moderate tempo - and set up a tantalising clash with Glorious Days in the BMW Champions Mile in four weeks.
"I wouldn't run away from any horse with him - I've spruiked this horse from the moment I sat on him," said Prebble, who won on the horse three times previously for former trainer John Moore including the Group Three Sa Sa Ladies' Purse earlier this season.
"He is world class and I have been saying that for a long time. It's his turn of foot, other horses just can't go with him when he lets it go. I had hold of him at the 220m mark still - and I still let him go too quickly. I got there too soon and once he gets to the front he just switches off and floats, he looks at the winning post - he is a real dude."
That last description - "a real dude" - is one Prebble usually reserves for another Fownes-trained star Lucky Nine and he says Packing Whiz shares some of that sprinter's quirky characteristics.
"If you saw him work in the mornings you wouldn't give two bob for him," Prebble joked.
"He is pretty easy to handle," Fownes agreed. "He just does enough in the mornings and is a good doer, so if anything, you just have to keep an eye on his weight."
Packing Whiz scoped with a substantial amount of blood in his trachea after an underwhelming eighth in the Stewards' Cup in January, his final run for Moore, but there were clearly no signs of internal issues yesterday.
"Ironing those issues out and keeping him fresh will be the trick to him," Prebble said. "Keeping him fresh is key, and maybe this time of the year is good for him as well - there's some cut in the ground and it isn't as hot."
Importantly, Fownes said the five-year-old's post-race recovery seemed good and the run is likely to bring the 1,200-pound plus gelding on - with a seemingly perfect length of time to his ultimate target.
"We're looking forward to taking on Glorious Days in the Champions Mile," Fownes said.
The Moore-trained runner-up Dan Excel put in yet another brave performance at top level and he will also head to the Champions Mile before a possible tilt at the Singapore Airlines International Cup two weeks later.
"He was gallant in defeat and he just met Packing Whiz on a good day," Moore said.
Pure Champion (Gerald Mosse) ran on strongly into third, but Dan Excel's stablemate and favourite Xtension returned to his disappointing early season form.
"There's something going on there," Moore said. "But we had him scoped and there was no blood problems and no heart issues - so let's just see in the next few days whether there is some soreness there."
