I know that many of you gave your support last Sunday to our three runners in the Yasuda Kinen, which we simulcast to Hong Kong. Unfortunately, none of them managed to find their top form on the day, the best being Sight Winner who finished fifth in this Group 1 Japanese mile event. But they all gave it a good try and we shouldn't give up hope for future years, as we've proved in the past that Hong Kong horses are well up to the job if the circumstances are right.
I was pleased to hear that the trainer of race winner Showa Modern, Hiroaki Sugiura, told Japanese media after the race that he intends to send the horse to compete in the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Mile in December. It was certainly an impressive run by Showa Modern as he won in a race record time, so it will be interesting so see if he can replicate that form on our home turf.
It was equally fascinating to see the decent turnover for our Yasuda Kinen simulcast, as although it was just a single simulcast race, the total amount still reached HK$20.1 million. A day earlier, we also had some satisfactory results in our Investec Derby simulcast night, as the total turnover figure for the five races on the card surpassed the HK$50 million mark, despite the fact that the races being shown live to our racing fans in Hong Kong for the first time in nine years.
This shows that racing fans' interest in simulcast events has been rising steadily. However, we also know that if we only take major races from other countries for our simulcasts without reciprocation, it will not help us in the long run to match the developing trend in global racing.
In fact, the Asian Racing Federation’s Executive Committee met in Tokyo during the Yasuda Kinen race meeting and discussed the latest developments in international bet commingling, particularly the commingling project between Singapore and Australia.
It was the first time that our counterparts from Singapore, Dubai and South Africa engaged in such discussion, and our Singaporean counterparts briefed us on the progress they've made since the commingling has been trialled few months ago. I’m pleased that they are very interested in knowing about the possibility of the Club’s future participation, as it reflects the fact that our racing counterparts still see us as one of the most important partners in the region.
I truly think the move taken by racing operators and administrators in Singapore and Australia has been very positive and encouraging. I hope there will come a day when we can remove the double taxation barrier, and develop our commingled pools with other racing clubs and jurisdictions overseas.
Back to our racing, with the Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup and Yasuda Kinen now consigned to this year's record books, we are getting close to the end of the season. I suspect that many of our local sports fans will be starting to put their focus on the FIFA World Cup which kicks off this Friday.
But before that, tonight at Happy Valley we will again be blending the elements of racing together with football for our racing and football fans on course, as two South China players - Au Yeung Yiu-chung and Kwok Kin-bong - will attend our final “Shoot For Glory” race night to interact with racing fans and share their football skills. So I hope you will enjoy this great combination of football and racing entertainment this evening.
Among the runners on the card, I will be watching how Rainbow Seeker and Tycoon Taylor perform in the Black’s Link Handicap. With an expected good pace, I think it should give Tycoon Taylor - who ran nicely in his last start at all-weather track - a good run on the rail with cover in midfield. For the reliable Rainbow Seeker, I hope the good pace can give him the chance to sit behind the pace off the leaders. I’ll see if he can make another decent run. Daily Double can also finish close if he can reproduce the strong dash in his impressive victory last time.
In the Cricket Club Valley Stakes, I think London China Town is the best horse in this 1000m event, as it’s truly outstanding for a northern hemisphere-bred three-year-old to snatch three winners and a second in his maiden season in Hong Kong. However, I'm sceptical about his chance tonight as it will be his first start in Happy Valley, was drawn gate 12 and will carry 132 pounds in this race. Although I believe he can handle the wet going, I think he will be facing a great challenge tonight. Comparatively, I think Lucky Red, who has shown a revival in form in his last start, may benefit from the inside draw and easily position along the rail in the early stage of the race. At Moment In Time, who won at the same course and distance last time, will also be another key contender in this event.
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