Douglas Whyte’s reputation as a master tactician was well founded in a wonderful riding career crowned by an unmatched 13 successive Hong Kong champion jockey titles and a record 1,813 wins in the saddle.
Douglas’ ability to be in the right place at the right time was a recurring theme during his riding days and it appears he has transferred that same faculty to the placement of his horses in a young training career which continues to flourish.
Sunday’s G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup triumph with Russian Emperor, under a patient and calculating ride from Blake Shinn, was the third Group 1 success this season for Douglas’ stable after the earlier wins of Stronger (G1 Centenary Sprint Cup) and Russian Emperor (G1 Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup).
Given the fact Douglas has been training since only 2019/20, this is a remarkable achievement and especially since there are only 12 Group 1 races across the Hong Kong season.
Russian Emperor’s performance to thrash his rivals, including Golden Sixty, in the Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m) was partially attributed to his liking for rain-affected ground, but Sunday’s performance to come from the tail of the field on the turn to accelerate clear on good ground was confirmation of broader quality.
Personally, I was a little bit sceptical about Russian Emperor being able to handle the 2400m, but he clearly demonstrated his ability to handle the extra distance by running the last 400m in 23.18s, winning very convincingly, and I look forward to his progress next season.
It is always exciting to watch fresh talent graduate through the classes and Cordyceps Six’s performance to win the G3 Sha Tin Vase Handicap (1200m) for Richard Gibson and Alexis Badel certainly bodes well for the future.
Starting the season in Class 4, Cordyceps Six has risen from a handicap rating of 60 to 107 with five wins this term while still only a three-year-old. One of the most impressive aspects of his win on Sunday was his brilliant acceleration, surging from the 800-400m in 21.89s before overhauling Nervous Witness over the final 400m in 22.26s.
I also would like to congratulate Tony Cruz for reaching 1,400 wins as a trainer. Fittingly, the milestone victory came with Circuit Nine came in the Pakistan Star Plate – a Griffins race named in honour of one of Tony’s great champions.
Tony is only the third trainer to saddle 1,400 winners in Hong Kong along with John Moore, who holds the record with 1,735, and John Size who currently has 1,404 wins – three more than Tony at this stage.
With 15 meetings left until the end of the season, Frankie Lor (74 wins) and John Size (74) continue to share an engrossing battle for supremacy in the trainers’ championship. As both men have regularly predicted, this tussle looks likely to go right down to the wire.
Joao Moreira’s four-timer at Sha Tin on Sunday leaves him with the upper hand over Zac Purton in the jockeys’ championship with a 119-112 lead. While it would be foolhardy to write off Zac, he now faces a monumental challenge to reel in his arch-rival.
At Happy Valley on Wednesday night, the Castle Peak Bay Handicap is a Class 2 over 1650 metres carded as the third of nine races with last-start winners Gorytus and Apache Pass both up in grade in the small but competitive field.
Soulmate will make the running with Zac Purton and has gone well in his limited opportunities over the course and distance. He will face pace pressure from Everyone’s Delight, ridden by Alexis Badel, and Telecom Fighters with Derek Leung. The pace will be good to slow.
I make Soulmate a place chance as the pace scenario will work to his benefit and he can control the tempo and prove tough to go past when the real running begins.
Savaquin has yet to win this season but has finished second on four occasions and is working very well. He will go back with Joao Moreira and his recent form in this grade makes him a prime contender. He is my win and place chance.
Gorytus won his last start one month ago in a driving finish and does his best work over this course and distance. He will close the race off strongly with Vincent Ho and is a place chance along with Everyone’s Delight.
Fa Fa won his first four races this season using the same pattern of travelling down from Conghua. He will employ that strategy again here after winning a recent Conghua trial in very slow time after disappointing in the Four-Year-Old Classic Series. He has a superb record at Happy Valley and may be a horse for the course. Matthew Chadwick will ride the co-winner of the Happy Valley Million Challenge for the first time.
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