I’m already beginning to feel excited about our international races which are now only three weeks away, and I’m sure many of you feel the same way as our annual showpiece racing event looms ever nearer. On Wednesday we announced the names of the jockeys who will participate in the LONGINES International Jockeys’ Championship, traditionally the opening event for our international week, at Happy Valley on 4 December. It is a great line-up, one of the best ever in my opinion, with some of the world’s very best coming to compete.
I’m delighted to learn that many fans are of the same view. Each year our objective is to bring some of the most successful and popular jockeys from around the world to compete in front of our fans here at Happy Valley. This time it’s only natural that a great deal of attention has been given to Mike Smith and Gary Stevens, as it’s the very first time for us to have two US Hall of Fame legends competing in this premier event.
Perhaps local racing fans may not be quite so familiar with Mike Smith as they are with Gary Stevens, but in fact he’s been one of the top riders in the US for many years and has been at the top of his game in the past few seasons. We have been talking to Mike for some time and are pleased that he has agreed to come this year, after winning three races in the most recent Breeders’ Cup.
Gary Stevens is no stranger to racing fans in Hong Kong. Some of you may recall that he enjoyed sound success when he rode for a short stint here back in the 1990s, and this will be his first time riding in Hong Kong for more than a decade. In fact the last time he came was when he participated in the 2001 edition of IJC. In one sense we are very lucky to be getting this chance to witness his great talents again, given that he returned unexpectedly from a seven-year retirement back in January. At the age of 50, he has proved that he’s as capable as ever by winning a Triple Crown event, the Preakness in May, and two Breeders’ Cup races last month including a first victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. I think it’s safe to say that local fans will definitely give him a warm reception on his Valley return.
Apart from these two world-class jockeys who have each ridden more than 5,000 winners in their careers, as usual, we have also invited a new face to ride in the series. The fast-emerging Japanese jockey Suguru Hamanaka will ride in Hong Kong for the first time and he has great credentials as last season he rode the most winners at JRA tracks. Both Kerrin McEvoy from Australia and Richard Hughes from the UK will also make their IJC debut, although they have both actually ridden in Hong Kong before. Add in IJC past winners Douglas Whyte, Christophe Soumillon and Ryan Moore, and I’m sure it will be an intriguing contest for the thousands of racegoers and overseas guests who will attend. I can guarantee that it will be an action-packed evening and a great opening event for our HKIR week.
Tomorrow’s racing at Sha Tin provides us with an opportunity to gauge the latest condition and progress of some of our top horses ahead of the LONGINES HKIR as they contest the three G2 Jockey Club races. I believe our sponsors LONGINES and BOCHK Wealth Management will be delighted with the quality of the fields as the race day will feature the likes of our international race hopefuls such as Military Attack, California Memory, Gold-Fun and Dan Excel. It promises to be an interesting day and I for one will be watching with interest to see how these top horses perform.
The LONGINES Jockey Club Cup is a G2 weight-for-age race run over 2000m. Military Attack and California Memory have to give five pounds away due to their International Group 1 wins last season, which improves the chances of their opponents. Liberator should take the lead, with Same World either sharing the lead or taking the box seat on the inside of Military Attack, who likely will go forward from Gate 10. Akeed Mofeed will likely push forward too from Gate 11 to avoid having to run wide. The tempo should be no faster than good to slow which makes it a little bit more difficult for horses coming from the back of the field. Dominant and Endowing should be well placed with California Memory settling behind midfield followed by Rainbow Chic, Jolly Victor and Ashkiyr at the back. Military Attack, California Memory and Endowing are all working very well and are my main choices, with Military Attack and California Memory having the best chance to win. I expect it will be very close between these two runners, with a slight preference for Military Attack. Endowing has a solid place chance, with Ashkiyr being an outsider in this race.
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