As an avid sports fan I have enjoyed a quite entertaining and interesting sporting weekend! After Saturday’s Sha Tin races I rushed to Chek Lap Kok to attend the Hong Kong Masters that evening – the finale event of the Longines Grand Prix. Some of the world’s best showjumping riders competed in this US$700,000 premier event, and I must say it was a very high-level contest, especially when you consider that each of the riders had to cope not only with the 1.6m high obstacles but also the intense atmosphere of the arena and the high competitiveness of the event.
It proved to be an extremely successful and memorable weekend for French rider Patrice Delaveau as he was crowned the winner of this grand prix competition, his fourth success of the week, which in total brought him more than US$350,000 in prize money. The packed audience in the hall showed its appreciation for the exciting contest by creating a superb atmosphere, showing that there are quite a lot of people in Hong Kong who know and enjoy equestrian sports. I look forward to attending the event again next year.
As well as taking in that high quality equestrian contest, I was impressed as I watched a couple of winning streaks continue at the weekend. In football, current Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich maintained their run as one of the form teams in Europe in 2013. The team’s hard-fought 1-0 win against Hoffenheim on Sunday stretched the team’s unbeaten league run to 15 matches, with the last seven all won. Similarly in local racing we saw a promising rising talent extend its season’s winning sequence to five. The horse I’m referring to is Solar Great whose latest triumph came in the HKG3 Hong Kong Macau Trophy last Saturday. I was very impressed with the good turn-of-foot he showed in his victory and I believe this fast-improving horse should be watched in the coming few months to see just how high he can climb.
Another nice young prospect caught my eye on Saturday too. No prizes for guessing – of course if was BMW Hong Kong Derby hopeful Akeed Mofeed who notched a debut victory in HK in a Class 2 event over 1800m. The horse looked very relaxed and travelled very well early in the race and he surged to the front in the stretch to win unfazed. With the Derby to be held on Sunday week, I believe the emphatic winning performance of this Irish import gave jockey Douglas Whyte a happy question to consider in his mind given that he had previously partnered the same connections’ Gold-Fun. It now seems that Douglas will stick on Akeed Mofeed rather than revert to Gold-Fun in the 2000m contest. Anyway, it will be interesting for us all to watch and see if he can achieve his third Derby success in four years.
Aside from Akeed Mofeed, Classic Cup winner It Has To Be You and that race’s third Ashkiyr, as well as a few other possible Derby contenders such as Mizani and Autumn Gold, all took part in the barrier trials at Sha Tin yesterday morning. Although none of them won their batches, those horses will have likely benefited from the trials. I will continue to follow their trackwork performances and progress before the showcase event next Sunday.
Just moments ago at Happy Valley Racecourse we have announced the list of runners selected for this local classic on 17 March. You can see whether your favourite Derby hopefuls are included in the list that we have just unveiled. Please also pay close attention to our Club’s website and other interactive channels in the coming days to obtain the latest Derby news and information as a lead-in to this important race.
Before this premier event on Sunday week, let’s get our focus back to our usual night meeting at Happy Valley this evening. Among the eight races on the card, the Morrison Hill Handicap is run as a Class 3 event over 1650m. The pace is expected to be slow as only a few runners in the field have an early pace. Alpha Grand who has not trialled or raced in Happy Valley is expected to repeat his leading tactic if he jumps well. Fortune Bravo can either share the lead or just sit off the pace together with Intellectualstride and Satirical Boy. Circuit Star who is working well should be placed just behind midfield. He is on his form and should be the horse to beat in this race. You Know I Win should be placed from Gate 3 beside him and he is the main danger to Circuit Star. He trialled in Happy Valley last month and is working better with the blinkers which will be applied in the race for the first time. The Untouchablelad, who will be positioned behind midfield, will be a place chance, as is Great Renown who has to come from even further back which is not an easy task due to the expected slow pace.
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