STAR American galloper, Cannonball, is settling into his new home in quarantine at the Sandown Racecourse after flying in from Hong Kong today (Tuesday).

The internationally accomplished sprinter-miler travelled well according to foreman Declan Murphy and arrives in Melbourne in great order despite a hectic year’s racing.

With the horse to complete two weeks quarantine, connections will waste no time getting down to business with the gelding to hit the training track either tomorrow or Thursday.

Joining Cannonball on the flight from Hong Kong were Apache Cat, Racing To Win and All Silent who return home after competing in the International meeting on 13 December.

An absentee was Australian Horse of the Year Scenic Blast who remained in Hong Kong before flying out to the USA to continue his career after incurring a three month bleeding ban.

Cannonball will be the first USA-trained horse to compete in Australia when he tackles an array of local stars in the upcoming Melbourne Festival of Racing (30 January – 14 March).

His initial target will be the opening leg of the 2010 Global Sprint Challenge, the $500,000 Coolmore Lightning Stakes (1000m), at Flemington on 30 January.

Trained by Wesley Ward for owner Ken Ramsey, Cannonball has competed at the highest level on three continents this year.

The gelding was runner-up in the Group 1 Golden Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot, UK in June before finishing third in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint in his homeland in November.

He raced below his best in the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Sprint at his most recent start with Murphy suggesting a minor hoof complaint may have been to blame.

BACKGROUND TO THE GLOBAL SPRINT CHALLENGE

THE Global Sprint Challenge is a collection of the world’s elite sprint races. It takes in eight races across four jurisdictions – Australia, United Kingdom, Japan and Hong Kong.

Australia’s two legs of the 2010 Challenge will both be held at Flemington – the $500,000 Coolmore Lightning Stakes (1000m) on 30 January and the $500,000 Patinack Farm Classic (1200m) on 6 November.

A bonus of $US1million is on offer for the connections of any horse that can win Group 1 Challenge races in three different countries in 2010.

RACING VICTORIA MEDIA RELEASE

Contact: Shaun Kelly – RVL Communications Manager M: 0417 145 796 P: (03) 9258 4252 E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.