Tony Cruz was looking forward to speaking to brother Derek after emulating his Group One Al Quoz Sprint (1,200m) heroics and maybe that’s why the legendary trainer has gone cold on the idea of taking California Spangle to Royal Ascot.

While Cruz suggested a trip to June’s Royal Ascot carnival for the Group One Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (1,200m) was “a possibility” after California Spangle’s record-breaking romp at Saturday’s Dubai World Cup meeting, by the time he got back to Sha Tin on Sunday the 67-year-old was leaning towards a tilt at Japan’s Group One Sprinters Stakes (1,200m) next season.

Cruz has never campaigned a horse in the United Kingdom, but his brother Derek twice returned empty-handed from Royal Ascot raids with Joy And Fun.

After Joy And Fun won the 2010 Al Quoz Sprint, the sprinter required surgery on a fractured foreleg following a 13th-placed finish in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes.

The son of Cullen raced on, finishing third in the 2012 Al Quoz Sprint before returning to Royal Ascot to run 16th in the Group One King’s Stand Stakes (1,000m).

Interestingly, the winner of that King’s Stand Stakes was Hong Kong’s Little Bridge, who was next seen when running 10th in the Sprinters Stakes three and a half months later.

While the Sprinters Stakes might be Cruz’s preference right now, the reality is that everything could change drastically after the Group One Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1,200m) later this month.

Should he run as planned, California Spangle will be tackling 1,200m around a turn for the first time since January 2022.

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After a week of proclaiming just how suitable the Meydan straight would be for his horse – “you need a 1,400m horse to do it” – one cannot help but wonder how quickly Royal Ascot will return to Cruz’s thoughts should sprinter-miler California Spangle be found out at Sha Tin on April 28.

With its undulations, Ascot’s straight six seems made for California Spangle, and the 2010 running of the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes was won by none other than the six-year-old’s sire, Starspangledbanner.

Ultimately, it seems cold, hard cash might outweigh prestige when Cruz and owners the Liang family make their decision, with the trainer saying on Sunday that “in England there isn’t too much prize money, but in Japan there is good money and it’s almost a package deal – I like that”.

While the Ascot dash is worth £1 million (HK$9.8 million), September’s Sprinters Stakes comes in at ¥368,200,000 (HK$19 million) and has the advantage of being a whole lot closer as well as more familiar for Cruz, who took out the 2005 edition of the Nakayama feature with Silent Witness.

Ascot’s director of racing and public affairs, Nick Smith, was in the Meydan parade ring following California Spangle’s victory on Saturday night, confirming the gelding would be invited to the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes and that connections would be offered a package to help cover the costs of travelling a horse halfway around the world.

After Wellington’s 2023 Royal Ascot mission went pear-shaped when the galloper hit his head in the gates and gave star jockey Ryan Moore a bloody nose in the early stages of the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes, it would be fitting to see another Hong Kong galloper attempting to make amends just 12 months later.

The reality is that whatever happens from here, Cruz has done a magnificent job rejuvenating a horse many thought had lost his appetite for the contest.

But while he is on such a roll after two Group One successes in the space of three weeks, it would be silly to rule anything out just yet. Who is to say he couldn’t take his swashbuckling style to both the UK and Japan in 2024?