The 2023/24 season has already been filled with incredible racing highlights and, with the BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) rapidly approaching on 24 March, HELIOS EXPRESS and CHANCHENG GLORY combined in last Sunday’s thrilling Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) to write another enthralling chapter in the Four-Year-Old Classic Series.
HELIOS EXPRESS showed great determination to remain undefeated in the HK$52 million Four-Year-Old Classic Series, having also won the Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) and his effort at the weekend to overcome difficulties in obtaining a clear run before catching CHANCHENG GLORY in the last stride was evidence of his class and courage.
Imported to Hong Kong on a rating of 64, HELIOS EXPRESS has subsequently posted six wins from eight starts and earned HK$23.07 million while rising to a mark of 102 under John Size – and he now stands on the cusp of matching the towering achievements of RAPPER DRAGON (2017) and GOLDEN SIXTY (2020), who won all three legs of the Four-Year-Old Classic Series, which culminates with the BMW Hong Kong Derby.
HELIOS EXPRESS’s jockey Hugh Bowman had to be patient on Sunday after the pace slowed from the 800m to the 400m, forcing him wait for a gap to appear. Once it did, it seemed as though HELIOS EXPRESS would win decisively but the bravery of Francis Lui’s CHANCHENG GLORY to resist under Keagan De Melo was immense and, in the end, only a short head separated the first two horses across the line.
HELIOS EXPRESS and CHANCHENG GLORY were having their first starts at 1800m and both these quality four-year-olds showed tremendous will to win with HELIOS EXPRESS clocking a race-best 22.93s for the final 400m sectional, while CHANCHENG GLORY was gallant with a 23.14s split, with another Size-trained runner ENSUED finishing third in 23.49s. Of those horses behind the first three, CHILL CHIBI (22.97s) ran on strongly for seventh at his first run since December, while STAR MAC (23.17s) franked his Hong Kong Classic Mile third with a good fourth.
With the final BMW Hong Kong Derby runner selection looming, HELIOS EXPRESS (102) remains the highest-rated horse entered in the Classic, while CHANCHENG GLORY rose to 84, one point less than ENSUED. STAR MAC is now rated 74, having started the season at 63.
Apart from those horses involved in the Hong Kong Classic Cup, one of the most impressive performances ahead of the BMW Hong Kong Derby came from Dennis Yip’s MASSIVE SOVEREIGN, whose Hong Kong debut victory under Zac Purton in the Somerset Handicap (2000m) put the former Ballydoyle gelding firmly into Derby calculations.
Having his first start since winning for Aidan O’Brien at Leopardstown in September, MASSIVE SOVEREIGN rose 10 points in the ratings to 82 with a brilliant display to be sixth in the order of horses entered for the Derby and he has certainly added another layer of intrigue with his performance.
Sustained excellence is the hallmark of all great champions and Zac Purton’s consistency is truly remarkable. With two trebles at the past two meetings, Zac has passed the 70-win milestone for the twelfth consecutive season.
With 1,685 Hong Kong wins, Zac is steadily bearing down on Douglas Whyte’s all-time Hong Kong record of 1,813 and, with a 25-win lead over Karis Teetan – 75 to 50 – in the 2023/24 Hong Kong jockeys’ championship, Zac is closing in on a seventh Hong Kong title.
At 41, he is riding as well as ever and last Sunday he was at his brilliant best in the presence of two winners of the LONGINES World’s Best Jockey award – Ryan Moore, who is also the reigning LONGINES World’s Best Jockey, and Hugh Bowman – as well as other international talents who flew in, Mickael Barzalona, Blake Shinn and Damian Lane, and also the best of those jockeys currently based in Hong Kong with three wins, two seconds and a third from 10 mounts. Hugh also managed three wins, two seconds and a third on Sunday.
This Sunday (10 March), we gather to welcome the return of the world’s highest-ranked sprinter LUCKY SWEYNESSE in the HK$13 million G1 Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup Handicap (1400m) at Sha Tin.
James McDonald returns to Hong Kong to partner Manfred Man’s star as he prepares to face nine quality rivals, including fellow Group 1 winner CALIFORNIA SPANGLE and BEAUTY ETERNAL, BEAUTY JOY, LUCKY WITH YOU, HEALTHY HAPPY, TAJ DRAGON, SON PAK FU, RED LION and GALAXY PATCH and it will be interesting to see if LUCKY SWEYNESSE is able to assert his superiority both as the winner of this race last year and four-time Group 1 winner.
At Happy Valley on Wednesday night the New Lantao Bus Handicap is carded as Race 5 at 8.40pm for Class 3 horses over 1650m with prizemoney of HK$2,050,000.
The pace in the race will be good to slow with STAR CONTACT the likely leader from his middle draw. LUCKY EIGHT will push forward from an outside gate and RED HARE KING will have enough tactical speed to hold a forward position.
RED HARE KING has been consistent at this course and distance, finishing in the top three at his last five starts. He beat AMAZING TEENS here on 10 January and then rose in class and was runner up to the promising four-year-old SIMPLY MAVERICK three weeks later.
At his latest start on 21 February, RED HARE KING settled fifth, one off the fence on a good tempo, before going wide around the home turn. Once he balanced up, RED HARE KING finished strongly to be narrowly beaten into third in a three-way photo-finish by WINNING DRAGON. Matthew Chadwick takes over on RED HARE KING here and from gate four he is a win and place chance.
WINNING DRAGON had all the favours in running in that race, settling sixth on the fence, coming through on the rails to beat LOVERO and RED HARE KING in a driving finish. WINNING DRAGON will have benefitted from time at Conghua since that run and is a place chance despite drawing the outside gate.
QUANTUM PATCH has a good record at this course and distance. He charged late, after settling at the back of the field, to be narrowly beaten by M UNICORN on 17 January. At his next run, he stayed on well to finish seventh behind GIDDY UP over 1400m at Sha Tin on 12 February in a strong race. QUANTUM PATCH has also had time at Conghua since that run and, with Zac Purton aboard, is a place chance.
ALL BEAUTY is another horse racing consistently at this course and distance. He extended to 1800m last start, when he settled at the back of the field and came widest in the straight, staying on for fifth to NOBLE PURSUIT. ALL BEAUTY may settle closer to the lead from gate two and is a place chance for Derek Leung. This is a competitive race, with plenty of depth and GALLANT WAKING and impressive last start winner CHARITY BINGO both have claims.
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