I have always suggested that having fresh young talent rising to the top in racing, with new equine stars for fans to follow as their careers progress, is really important to sustaining interest in our sport. This year, some of the top four-year-olds who featured in the BMW Hong Kong Derby gave us a great race, and their subsequent performances have confirmed that the Derby was as good as it appeared at the time.
Derby winner Designs On Rome added an international G1 victory in the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup, while runner-up Able Friend notched a HKG2 win and subsequently finished just behind the exceptional Variety Club in the Champions Mile. Derby’s third Dibayani has also done well as he finished runner-up in the HKG1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup last week.
Away from Hong Kong, the racing world in the northern hemisphere is in the middle of the “Derby season”. I’m sure our Executive Director of Racing Bill Nader has been enjoying the fairytale story in the US, as California Chrome won the Kentucky Derby earlier this month and followed that up with success in the Preakness Stakes a fortnight ago. Many American fans are hoping that this California-bred horse will become the first US Triple Crown winner since 1978, when he competes in the Belmont Stakes on 7 June. Over the past few years there have been a few horses who have managed to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown, but they have all been found wanting in the final leg, run over a distance of 2400m. As you can imagine, many sports fans in America tune in to the live coverage of this race whenever there is a horse going for Triple Crown glory, and it is a real chance for racing to pick up more coverage and hopefully, new followers. With the wonderful story around California Chrome, I’m sure that will be the case this year too. Let’s see if this popular horsecan end that wait and create a new chapter in the history of American racing.
Interestingly we will now be bringing you four Derby simulcasts in the space of one week. Among them is the most lucrative Derby in the world, the Japanese Derby (Tokyo Yushun) which carries total prize money of 416 million yen, or around HK$31 million. I think few could argue that the entire world of racing has noticed the continued rise of Japan as a major international player over the past two years. Their top middle and classic distance horses such as Orfevre, Gentildonna and Just A Way have become their main flagbearers, producing sensational performances both at home and overseas. This top contest for three year olds at Tokyo racecourse tomorrow can give us some clues as to which Japanese superstars we might be seeing on the international stage in the future.
Other than that we will also be carrying two prestigious Derby races from Europe in two consecutive weekends, namely the French Derby (Prix du Jockey Club) tomorrow and the origin of them all, the Epsom Derby, next Saturday. With over two centuries of history the Epsom Derby remains the most prestigious classic race in Europe, and a hugely significant national sporting event in the UK. But before then I will be concentrating on the French Derby tomorrow night. For the past few years the French Derby has often drawn big fields, producing a fiercely competitive contest at Chantilly. This year there will be two German runners in the French Derby field, and the like race favourite is being ridden by Gerard Mosse - I look forward to seeing how they perform tomorrow night. By the way, my horse Now We Can will also run tomorrow on the French Derby card in the G2 Grand Prix de Chantilly. I hope he can repeat last year’s win.
As you read this blog I will already be in Macau for the Macau Hong Kong Trophy day, including the Macau Derby, at Taipa this afternoon. We have five runners in the Trophy this year and they will be bidding to give Hong Kong back-to-back successes in this race. I’m optimistic about their chances. Winning Leader and Deep Thinker are likely to be our leading hopes, while Wonder Mossman will be the best chance for the Macau team in this 1500m event.
Apart from the Japanese and French Derby simulcasts, there is an interesting 10 race card at Sha Tin tomorrow. The final race of the day is the Cafeteria Handicap, a Class 2 over 1600m which has attracted a very competitive field. The pace is expected to be good to slow with Fat Choy Hong Kong and Business As Usual likely to be leading early on, especially as there are no regular pacesetters in the field. Enthusiasm, Khaya and Royal Partner should also race prominently, probably just off the speed which will give them a slight advantage. Kabayan and Packing Llaregyb should find cover in midfield, with Travel Brother, Beauty Lead, Crazy Buddies and Ho In One at the back. Packing Llaregyb is working well and he should not have an issue with the step up in distance. He’s my first choice with Travel Brother, Kabayan, Khaya and Enthusiasm, who are all working well, being others with a chance in this race.
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