Last Sunday we had double G1 action on Derby day at Sha Tin and I believe most of the 60,000 racegoers who were inside the racecourse thoroughly enjoyed the terrific action. If you were there in the Sha Tin grandstand, you were most likely one of those roaring enthusiastically as the Derby contenders turned into the home straight. The atmosphere was amazing and has rarely been matched in my time here.
This year’s BMW Hong Kong Derby certainly met all of our pre-race expectations, as Designs On Rome and Able Friend produced, in my opinion, a sheer classic and one of the most exciting Derbies of all time. These two talented four-year-olds fought stride for stride down the final stretch of the 2000m contest but just as in the Classic Cup it was Designs On Rome who emerged the winner. Once again, Designs On Rome made an early run for home, and, after duelling with Able Friend in the closing stages, he made his plentiful stamina tell at the finish, defeating his arch-rival by half a length to claim the prestigious honour. In the process, both horses showed that they are world-class and could be in the mix with others at 2000m and 1600m respectively. And with that thought in mind, Dibayani’s effort in finishing a close third was also a great run.He posed a strong threat to the top two horses and I think he can develop into a very good performer at 2000m and beyond.
Gold-Fun was the star of our other G1 contest on Sunday, the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup, as the Richard Gibson-trained five-year-old sealed an authoritative victory in that 1400m event. The win was his second at G1 level, following his Hong Kong Classic Mile success last year, and this latest victory serves as some redemption for that close second in the LONGINES Hong Kong Mile in December.
It’s fantastic to see these horses doing so well at the top level and it’s great to hear that they will all be aimed for our upcoming G1 international contests in late April and early May. Designs On Rome is beingprimarily targeted at the Audemars Piguet QE II Cup, while both Able Friend and Gold-Fun are being set towards the Champions Mile. Along with our runners that will return from the Dubai World Cup meeting, we should have strong home representation in both races.
It’s always a pleasure for us to be able to stage top-class races for the enjoyment of our racing public. It’s just as pleasing for us to earn the praise of our Derby race sponsor BMW. It’s the second year for this German automobile manufacturer offering their support to our most prestigious local race, and their top executives were delighted with the huge success of the day. They are already looking forward to the BMW Derby next season and to seeing how we can extend our collaboration even further, building on the success we have enjoyed together to date.
The immense support given by our various race sponsors has always been important to the Club. With their participation, not only does it help to bring horseracing to a wider audience, it also provides a boost for our racing development. We also play our part actively, blending some new and innovative ideas along with racing, so as to make the sport more attractive and enjoyable for all.
The concept of the popular Wines in the Valley race nights has been one of them, and tonight we will host the last of these themed nights at Happy Valley this season. I hope those of you who join us enjoy a great evening there. For the eight races on the card, the O'Brien Handicap is the last race of the night but this Class 2 event over 1200m has attracted the best field of horses in tonight’s race programme. Strong pace-setters California Bounty and Beauty Sparkle should take up their usual roles. Caga Force from Gate 5 and Bundle Of Love from Gate 11 are likely to compete for good positions on the pace. This should result in a good to fast pace which gives horses even from the back of the field a better chance to perform to their best. Golden Harvest, Exciting Dream and Metallic Star should be well placed, with Bundle Of Love at risk to be trapped wide. My Name Is Bond will have to come from the back of the field but the faster pace should help him.
The two strong favourites for this race are Golden Harvest and Exciting Dream. With both horses working well, it should be a close finish between both of them, with a slight advantage for Exciting Dream despite his little setback two months ago with a quarter crack. My Name Is Bond is my third pick while Bobo Dragon is my fourth choice in this race.
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