I’m sure you all know by now that we have a very exciting new recruit to our already impressive jockey roster – Joao Moreira. Making trip in preparation for his imminent relocation to our city, Moreira took the chance to meet local media at Sha Tin on Thursday morning, and talked about his background and personal aspirations.
There is already great expectation resting on Joao’s shoulders. He has a fantastic record of achievement behind him and has dominated the Singapore scene in recent seasons. And Hong Kong fans are expecting a lot after he dazzled us all with his victory in last December’s LONGINES International Jockeys’ Championship at Happy Valley.
But I was interested to hear from our media friends and officials who attended Thursday’s gathering that they were impressed with Joao’s humble, down-to-earth attitude and character. By all accounts he is a gentleman and a sportsman, and it is pleasing to learn that Joao is not underestimating the challenge he will face in Hong Kong. I know that many people view this Brazilian, dubbed The Magic Man, as a strong rival to our perennial champion Douglas Whyte. Joao, however, pointed out that he has great respect for Douglas, and indeed all of the other riders he will be up against here in Hong Kong, and is more reserved in his immediate ambitions. He realises that he must first take things step by step, getting rides and then winners, and getting know different owners and trainers to gain support.
Given his vast achievements and undoubted talents, it was also interesting to learn that Joao explained that he has come here to improve further. Sometimes it’s that extra ounce of determination and hunger for success that makes the difference. Singapore was great for Joao, it gave him a profile on the world stage and now he is ready to take the next step, to take up the challenge in Hong Kong, which as we know is one of the most competitive racing scenes in the world. His first chance to shine will be at the day meeting at Happy Valley on 20 October and it will be interesting to see if he can get some early momentum in few weeks. Joao returned to Singapore to ride at Kranji last night and will also feature in races there tomorrow, when I’m sure he will receive a hero’s farewell.
With the increasing globalisation of racing, the movement of world-class jockeys has become more common, as we see with many top overseas riders plying their trade in Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. It’s a similar scenario for many of the top horses as they also move between different countries on a more regular basis than in the past to compete in the various major races around the world each year.
The movement of top horses is one of the topics we discussed at the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities annual conference earlier this week. I strongly believe it is vital for us to facilitate easier travel of racehorses between countries. Not only would it contribute to the size and quality of fields in top races around the world, but will also enable the international handicappers to have more accurate measurements in their World’s Best Racehorse Rankings if more of the world’s best horses are able to compete against one another more often. It will take some time for us to work through all the issues and reach our goal, but we have made a good start.
Some quality overseas racehorses will also feature in our international races in December. I’m pleased that last night we received confirmation from Mr George Strawbridge, owner of Prix de la Foret winner Moonlight Cloud, that he will target his horse for the LONGINES Hong Kong Mile. It is a terrific news that this exceptional mare is set to run in Hong Kong and I look forward to news of more top class international horses heading to the LONGINES HKIR in the coming weeks.
Back to the local race scene, dozens of racehorses will take part in our 10-race programme at Sha Tin this afternoon. Among the races on the card, the Chinese Recreation Club Challenge Cup is a true Class 1 race run over 1600m. The line up of horses is fantastic. They include a few really interesting horses such as Designs On Rome, Flagship Shine and Mizani, who have the potential to become stars in the future, as well as few other proven Class 1 winners such as Same World. The pace of the race is expected to be good to slow, with Blazing Speed leading again and likely be joined by Beauty Lead. Fair Trade, Flagship Shine and Outdoor Pegasus will compete for good spots just off the pace, with Designs On Rome and Mizani well placed.
Mizani is running with blinkers fitted for the first time and has improved from his first run. He is the horse to beat with his advantage of having already had a start this season. Designs On Rome has the potential to become a real star horse but he is not fully tuned up for his first start. His class makes him still a win and place chance but I see him more as a horse for a place. Flagship Shine should not be underestimated and is going well. He looks fit despite his increase in body weight and looks more advanced in his preparation than Designs On Rome. Blazing Speed looked big in condition for his first start of the season and has improved. I see him as a horse who can run a place similar to Fair Trade due to their advantage of having had a run already.
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