Hong Kong’s Group 1 season closed in spectacular fashion last Sunday (25 May) with VOYAGE BUBBLE’s stunning G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup (2400m) victory and our world-class racing continues at Sha Tin on Saturday (31 May) with a fascinating Group 3 double-header highlighted by a string of top-line gallopers.
No fewer than five Group 1 winners – RED LION, BEAUTY ETERNAL, LUCKY SWEYNESSE, VICTOR THE WINNER and INVINCIBLE SAGE – feature across the HK$4.2 million G3 Lion Rock Trophy Handicap (1600m) and the HK$4.2 million G3 Sha Tin Vase Handicap (1200m), giving the meeting a decided touch of class.
Apart from the presence of established horses competing in lucrative late-season contests, one of the most exciting aspects of both these races is a shared history of launching future stars with
AEROVELOCITY, PENIAPHOBIA, LUCKY SWEYNESSE and KA YING RISING all winning the Sha Tin Vase Handicap before advancing to Group 1 glory.
Similarly, the Lion Rock Trophy Handicap was won by BEAUTY ETERNAL before he rose to Group 1 success, while RAPPER DRAGON won the race as a three-year-old in 2016 before sweeping all three legs of the Four-Year-Old Classic Series, culminating in BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) triumph in 2017.
It is with this history in mind, the performances today of emerging talents such as JOHANNES BRAHMS and DIVANO will be intriguing in the Lion Rock Trophy Handicap, while HELIOS EXPRESS – placed seven times this season behind the world’s top-rated sprinter KA YING RISING – will have the opportunity to again prove his wares against proven Group 1 stars.
With the possibility of more rain, I would recommend to have a close monitoring of the track conditions especially in the case of significant rain fall.
The G3 Lion Rock Trophy is carded as Race 6 and run over 1600m at 3pm for prizemoney of HK$4.2 million.
The pace will be good with RED LION (Hugh Bowman) likely to lead from barrier one. PRAY FOR MIR (Matthew Chadwick) will press forward from gate eight with his light weight to settle in the leading group. DIVANO (Angus Chung) will be prominent from gate three, while BEAUTY ETERNAL (James Orman), ENCOUNTERED (Karis Teetan) and HAPPY TOGETHER (Alexis Badel) will also look to settle in the front half of the field.
JOHANNES BRAHMS (Andrea Atzeni) ran third in the Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) behind RUBYLOT and then ran well in BMW Hong Kong Derby, finishing sixth to CAP FERRAT, beaten two lengths. The form out of the BMW Hong Kong Derby so far has been excellent and JOHANNES BRAHMS has drawn well in gate five and with his light weight is a win and place chance.
RED LION posted a massive upset in the G1 FWD Champions Mile, beating VOYAGE BUBBLE in an epic finish to claim a well-deserved maiden victory at the elite level. Hugh delivered a masterful front-running ride on that occasion and under 135lb it will be interesting if Hugh today attempts to lead or chooses to sit just off the speed. RED LION is a place chance.
SUNLIGHT POWER (Harry Bentley) won impressively in Class 2 three starts back and made a significant step forward last start in the FWD Champions Mile when he settled back in the field and finished powerfully over the last 150m to take third behind RED LION and VOYAGE BUBBLE. SUNLIGHT POWER has been in Conghua since and is a place chance under handicap conditions.
BEAUTY JOY (Zac Purton) ran third in this race last year and is a place chance along with HAPPY TOGETHER and CHANCHENG GLORY (Luke Ferraris), while DIVANO ran second in the Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) and has won since and he can also run well.
The G3 Sha Tin Vase is carded as Race 8 and run over 1200m at 4.05pm for prizemoney of HK$4.2 million.
The pace will be strong with VICTOR THE WINNER (Karis Teetan) likely to lead from gate three. LADY’S CHOICE (Matthew Chadwick) also has good gate speed and will be prominent along with MAGICAL CONTROL (Matthew Poon), INVINCIBLE SAGE (Ben Thompson), COPARTNER PRANCE (Alexis Badel) and BEAUTY WAVES (Angus Chung).
HELIOS EXPRESS (Hugh Bowman) has repeatedly chased KA YING RISING throughout the season, finishing behind the champion sprinter in every run, five times as runner-up and twice placed third. In the G1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m) on 27 April, he went back to last from the outside gate and ran home well in the straight, just beaten for second by SATONO REVE. HELIOS EXPRESS is my win and place selection carrying 123 pounds. My only reservation is in case the track is on the soft side and whether he can handle this.
LUCKY SWEYNESSE (Derek Leung) resumed after a break of more than a year when he drifted back towards the tail of the field in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize before running on well to take sixth. Derek takes the ride for the first time today and it will not be easy for LUCKY SWEYNESSE to give so much weight to all of his rivals. He would benefit from good to soft track conditions and he can run a place.
INVINCIBLE SAGE finished a distant fourth to KA YING RISING in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize but carries only 115lb here. He is working well and especially would benefit from a track on the soft side. He is also a place chance.
PATCH OF THETA (Keagan De Melo) may find this trip too sharp for him but he has had a great season, winning his first Group race on 1 January in the G3 Chinese Club Challenge Cup Handicap (1400m). He has had a break since a last start second to DIVANO over 1400m on 13 April, but has looked good in two subsequent trials. PATCH OF THETA will be running home late and is a place chance along with MUGEN (Andrea Atzeni).
LADY’S CHOICE is in great form and while he is running against his handicap mark, he can handle a good to yielding track and could surprise.
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