Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival and I wish you all a happy holiday with your families and friends.
With greater exposure to the international racing scene, and the valuable experiences accumulated in recent years, our trainers in Hong Kong are now more tactical and skilful in planning and preparing their horses for major overseas races – a fact borne out by more frequent positive results overseas in recent seasons.
It’s my observation that nowadays local trainers usually give their horses serious gallops or trial them before they depart Hong Kong. After arriving overseas, they are then more focused on maintaining the physical condition of the horses, particularly for the first 48 hours on the ground in a foreign country. As you may know, it’s almost inevitable that horses will lose a bit of weight during long journeys. That’s why the accompanying team of horsemen aim to make sure their horses drink well and eat well during and after the trip, as problems like low appetite or dehydration could cause a horse to lose weight and subsequently affecting its condition leading into the race. It’s no wonder that trainers are often heard to say that a horse coping well with the journey and recovering quickly to its normal weight represents half of their job done.
Certainly the distance of the journey and the climate experienced in other countries can both have an impact on how a horse performs, depending on how the horse transitions. A shorter trip to destinations such as Japan or Singapore would naturally be deemed to be easier to handle. But a longer trip to Dubai or Europe, and particularly the hot weather in Dubai, of course involves more uncertainties, and might test the training team. With this in mind, Little Bridge’s success in England this summer should not be underestimated – it was a great effort by the horse and his connections.
Of course, horses are not machines, and no matter how expert the trainer and his staff or how thorough the preparations, sometimes we need some luck as a horse may have an off day when the big race comes around. And it is important for connections to plan their horses’ racing schedules very carefully, taking consideration of our feature races here in Hong Kong when looking at overseas ventures and striking a balance that ties in with what best suits the horse.
Little Bridge and Lucky Nine, the two Hong Kong runners contesting the G1 Sprinters Stakes at Nakayama Racecourse this afternoon, are examples of horses that underwent their big-race preparations in Hong Kong. They have enjoyed easy workouts this week and their respective weights were maintained at around the same level as in Hong Kong. I have noted that some of the Japanese trainers and jockeys told the media that they consider our two Hong Kong sprinters to be real threats, which is sensible as both of them are G1 winners, in the UK and Hong Kong respectively. They are both seasoned travellers and their trainers have the benefit of previous overseas experiences to call upon.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t be in Nakayama in person on this occasion to offer my personal support to these two top sprinters. But I shall still watch how they perform through our simulcast today and I wish both horses’ connections the best of luck in Japan.
The Nakayama racecourse has been very fast in recent weeks and horses that race in a forward position have enjoyed an advantage. I expect that there will be some give in the ground as the result of wet weather leading up to the race. Little Bridge performs well over any ground and Lucky Nine has a preference to good ground. I think both horses have an outstanding chance over the tricky Nakayama course and I believe horses that are not forward or midfield in the run will face a heavy task.
Japan is currently known more for its middle distance runners and stayers than its sprinters, but there are three very talented Japanese females in the race. Curren Chan is the reigning Queen of Japanese sprinters, Spring Thunder is another with solid credentials and the three-year-old filly Epice Arome is up and coming.
Curren Chan is only the second horse in history to win the fall-spring Japanese sprint double, having won the 2011 Sprinters Stakes and this year’s Takamatsunomiya Kinen in March. She will be the race favourite in Japan and her ability to rise to the occasion in Japan’s major G1 sprints is noted. But I prefer others in this field of 16. Lord Kanaloa, despite the outside draw, is improving and may be ready to claim his first ever Group 1 victory. Little Bridge and Lucky Nine are both in with a big chance. Little Bridge has great tactical speed, which is an advantage at Nakayama and Lucky Nine is a terrific first-up horse. Spring Thunder is another possibility for me in what promises to be a great race.
Apart from our Sprinters Stakes simulcast, a number of top-class horses will also be in action on our home turf at our National Day races at Sha Tin tomorrow. The occasion will feature the first pattern races of the season – the Sha Tin Sprint Trophy and National Day Cup – which are both HKG3 events.
In the National Day Cup, Aashiq makes his first start of the season and is a specialist with six wins over the track and distance. He should ensure an honest pace, along with Beauty Flash, an international G1 winner, that has won five of 11 over the track and distance. But it is the improving Voile Rouge, coming off a modest Class 2 win last week that catches my attention and I think he is the one to beat. Admiration is another chance as he runs well fresh and has drawn a good gate, but must shoulder top weight of 133 pounds.
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