I was delighted to see the promising performances of some of our top runners in the international trials last Sunday. Among them, I was particularly impressed with the way in which up-and-coming runner Happy Zero won the Cathay Pacific International Sprint Trial. Facing his toughest test yet against some true sprint powerhouses, he couldn't find enough space until the final furlong, but then showed tremendous acceleration in his final few strides to win by a healthy margin in the end.
While this John Moore-trained runner certainly proved his sprint credentials with his comfortable victory, it is interesting that his jockey Darren Beadman recommended that the mile will probably be a more suitable distance for him at this stage. It is a risky move because the horse has never raced over that distance and if there is no pace in the race, he could be overraced. Having said that, he showed great potential in last Sunday's event. I would say that this new star will be a leading contender in the main event next month.
For Sacred Kingdom, although he finished well beaten into the runner-up position, I think it was a good performance given that it was five months since his previous start, and he was giving 5 pounds away. I'm looking forward to seeing how this champion sprinter runs next month.
In the International Mile Trial, last year's Hong Kong Mile champion Good Ba Ba ran a creditable third, despite not being on top form. I think he will get better in the weeks to come and hope he can make new history by becoming the first horse to win one of our international races for three consecutive years, but I'm not as confident about his chances as I was last year. As for the reigning Hong Kong Cup champion Eagle Mountain, he finished a disappointing second last in this warm-up race, and it will be difficult for him to have a turnaround in three weeks.
When you look at the high quality of both the local and overseas contenders nowadays for the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Races, which have become recognised in the sport as the Turf World Championships, it's easy to forget that Hong Kong's first ever international race only took place just over 20 years ago. Last Friday, I was invited to address members of the American Chamber of Commerce on how the Club had set about upgrading the standards of its horse racing in recent years and built a successful sports brand that now helped to sell Hong Kong internationally.
I told the guests that a successful racing industry not only helped fuel Hong Kong's economic growth, but also put the city on the international sporting map and positioned it as a centre of excellence. In addition, it brought countless benefits to the local community through the Club's tax contributions, employment opportunities, charitable donations and community projects funded by the Club over the years.
The International Races also give a valuable boost to our tourism industry, as each year they attract thousands of overseas visitors and generate worldwide media coverage of our racing as well as its many exciting attractions in Hong Kong.
Anyway, tonight at Happy Valley we shall be hosting a ceremony before the racing starts to unveil the names of this year's contestants in the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Races at Sha Tin on 13 December. So please get to the racecourse extra early to find out which local and overseas horses are included on our invitation list.
There should also be lots of excitement in the eight races on tonight's card. Personally, I shall be watching Easy, True Intelligence and Finn Maccool in the Dunbar Handicap. Although Easy and True Intelligence were both long shots and drawn wide in their previous runs, they performed impressively and were narrowly defeated in their respective races. They will be competing at the same distance and I hope they can produce promising runs again tonight. Finn Maccool has finished in the money in both of his two previous starts this season Though he will be carrying top weight tonight, I'll see if Jeff Lloyd can spring a surprise for this five-year-old in this race.
For the St Andrew's Challenge Quaich, I expect that it will be a tough battle but I'm interested to see how Go Fay Fay and Shy Baldy run in this race. Go Fay Fay performed nicely in his Hong Kong debut at Happy Valley last month, as he finished a creditable fourth in that race, while Shy Baldy secured a runner-up finish on the Sha Tin straight course last time. Although both are drawn wide tonight, I still think they are the leading contenders in this 1000m event. Racing Club's runner Young Label also showed nice progress in trackwork recently. I would not be surprised if he can upset both Go Fay Fay and Shy Baldy when he starts from Gate 1 this evening.
Comment
