The clock is ticking down to the BMW Hong Kong Derby and this Saturday’s card at Sha Tin promises to be very informative.
It’s not unheard of for a horse to win Saturday’s Class 2 Lion City Handicap over 1800m and then land the Derby–as Collection and Akeed Mofeed showed by winning the corresponding races in 2009 and 2013–and John Size saddles two strong contenders in Enrichment and the exciting Waikuku this year.
This looks a clear case of whether the improving speed horse can step up in trip to beat the proven stayer. Enrichment is fresh from a smart winning performance over the Derby distance of 2000m, while Waikuku has been very impressive in three wins over 1400m and got the better of a useful older rival despite being forced to race wider than ideal on his latest start.
Giant Turtle will go forward from stall 3 but may not have to set a strong pace to lead Charity Go, Packing Warrior and Enrichment. Joao Moreira has a tricky tactical decision to make from stall 12 on Waikuku but this gelding is already rated close behind the very best four-year-olds and if he can give 9lb and more to this field then he could become a very strong Derby contender. Charity Go is fighting for a place in the Derby and should not be underestimated, he is a place chance in this 1800m event.
The Association of Hong Kong Racing Journalists Challenge Cup is the first of two Cup races with a solid field of 12 in the Class 4 sprint over 1200m. Super Eighteen and Bullish Brother will set a genuine pace with Prince Of Gems, Craig’s Star and newcomer Beauty Applause in stalking positions.
Beauty Applause has trialled three times in preparation for his career debut, most recently at Conghua as well as Happy Valley and Sha Tin. He has good speed and will need to use it early from his outside barrier.
Prince Of Gems is another with natural speed and he looked good winning his debut last month. This is a tougher race and he will have to carry 133lb but he should get a good trip and is a win and place chance.
Happy Alumni will do his running from the back and comes off a sharp effort in the class and distance at Sha Tin four weeks ago. Yichun Blitz is better drawn and improving. He is also a place chance along with Beauty Applause.
Race seven is the Singapore Turf Club Trophy, a Class 3 at 1200m, with Thrilled, Team Spirit and Healthy Luck expected to stride forward. The pace will be good and Aerohappiness is likely to get a nice spot behind the leaders from his good draw.
Thrilled turned in a promising effort in his Hong Kong debut last month and is a win and place chance. He will dispute the early pace and is a strong contender in his second-up run.
Aerohappiness lost his left front plate shortly after the start of his last race and sustained a wound to the inside of his left front heel. This contributed to a sub-par performance as he had to be used early in the run to cross from a wide draw.
His better draw in this race should help him bounce back with a better performance and is a place chance along with First Responder and Flying Thunder from off the pace.
Finally this week, a word on our decision to reduce the rating threshold for Private Purchases from 70 to 68. This decision has been made after a detailed study of PP imports over a five year period.
The market for PP’s has become increasingly strong and, having studied all the evidence, we feel confident that lowering the threshold slightly will give owners a better chance of sourcing suitable horses without any appreciable drop-off in the quality of those imports.
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