Earlier this week, we announced a decision to issue short-term Club Jockey licences to three overseas riders, so that Hong Kong racing can benefit from their skills during the European winter season. Top British jockey Neil Callan, who has so far ridden 95 winners in the UK this year, will be the first to arrive in mid-November and will stay until the end of February. He will be familiar to most of you, as this is his second riding stint here.
The others are French duo Maxime Guyon and Mickael Barzalona, who will be with us for about 10 weeks and a month respectively from early December. Maxime will also need little introduction to most Hong Kong fans, but it will be Mickael's first visit here. I'm sure, though, that many of you will know something about Mickael already as he's been making a lot of headlines in international racing this year.
Over the past two decades, quite a few French jockeys have become major forces in world racing, such as Gerald Mosse, Eric Saint-Martin and Olivier Peslier, whose track records all include their home country’s most prestigious classic event – the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. All of them have ridden in Hong Kong at one time or another and, of course, Gerald still does. More recently, Christophe Lemaire has not only made a big name for himself in France and England, but also won top events in Hong Kong and Japan.
Now it seems that the baton is about to be taken over by the new French generation of Guyon and Barzalona, who are both only in their early 20s and seen as the brightest young prospects in Europe. Maxime quickly won the hearts of local racing fans in his debut here last winter, riding an impressive 15 winners during his short stay including a pair of G1s in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Classic Cup and Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby, both aboard Horse of the Year Ambitious Dragon. And he has added more G1 titles to his record since returning to France, including the French Oaks, Prix Jean Romanet and Grand Prix de Paris.
As for Mickael, he really is a young sensation as he has gained his first Group 1 success in only his fourth season of riding this May, when Wavering won the Prix Saint-Alary at Longchamp. He doubled the tally the following month by winning the Epsom Derby aboard French runner Pour Moi. Only 19 at the time, he became one of the youngest jockeys ever to win this prestigious British classic, following the footsteps of the legendary Lester Piggott and Walter Swinburn. He has also gained good support this year from the Godolphin stable, riding a couple of important winners for Sheikh Mohammad in England and at the Dubai Racing Carnival.
When I was chatting with the local racing media before the start of this season, I expressed my hopes of securing Maxime's return and getting Mickael to ride in Hong Kong for at least a short stint. I feel very satisfied that both these targets have now been realised, and I'm sure that most local racing fans will share my excitement at seeing these top young jockeys competing on our Hong Kong turf. I know you will give them both a big welcome.
But there are a few weeks still to go yet, so let’s get back to our racing tomorrow, when we'll be staging one of only two Happy Valley daytime meetings this season. You can still enjoy all the things that make Happy Valley so special – including some tightly-contested races and a pint of cool beer in the Beer Garden – but daytime meetings there also have an atmosphere of their own, which you can enjoy while soaking up the sunshine.
However, I have to proceed back to Germany for some family matters this weekend, which means I have to miss the Valley races tomorrow. Despite that, I’ve already studied on the 10 races, and I found that a few of them promise to be rather exciting.
The Po Leung Kuk Centenary Cup is at 1200 metres with a pair of promising Australian-breds making their Hong Kong debuts and both figure to be in contending midfield positions. Super Tiger comes in for trainer David Hall after winning two of four starts in Australia and had a nice trial down the straight at Sha Tin three weeks ago. This is his first time around a right-handed turn and his past history suggests he may want more ground. Friends Of Yan Oi is the first new horse for trainer Richard Gibson and he won a trial convincingly on good to yielding nearly two weeks ago. For me, the horse to beat is Moneymaker as he continues to show improvement in his first season in Hong Kong and now seems primed to deliver his top effort. It is the first of four rides Tye Angland has for John Size, as Douglas Whyte is still serving for his suspension. Horse for the course Many Gains won four races at Happy Valley late last season over a stretch of two months and is a real danger from his good draw. Happy Yeah Yeah has a much more favourable draw tomorrow and is also dangerous as he will be a big factor throughout. Regency Luck is in excellent form and makes his first appearance at Happy Valley. He will need to use his speed from an outside draw.
The Hong Kong Squash celebrates its 50th anniversary in the Hong Kong Squash 50th Anniversary Cup tomorrow. This 1000m dash event should suit likely favourite runner Space Race. Gerald Mosse has the ride tomorrow and has been up for both of Space Race's prior wins. He should be prominent in the run and is my top choice. Despite a difficult outside draw, Supreme Taiji is a place chance as well as Vintage Hussler, a horse that is solid over the course and distance. Shining Triumph drops back in trip to 1000m and can be well placed from his good draw to give him every chance in this sprint race.
Later in the evening, there will also be a mouthwatering football clash, as the two sides of Manchester will face off at Old Trafford. City currently rank first while United are second in the Premier League, and both showed good form by seeing off tricky Spanish and Romanian opposition respectively in the Champions League group matches in midweek. The Manchester Derby is always fiery and a great match to watch. As an avid football fan, I certainly won't be missing it!
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