Last Sunday some of our four-year-old elites delivered enlightening performances on the Sha Tin turf in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Classic Mile. There'll be more top-class racing action at Sha Tin tomorrow, as we have a double Group 1 raceday on offer with the Stewards' Cup and Kent & Curwen Centenary Sprint Cup, which commence this season's Triple Crown and Hong Kong Speed Series respectively.
The Triple Crown and Hong Kong Speed Series will be the first major target for many of our star local horses since they faced top overseas competition in the International Races last month. These two well established racing series embrace six Group One races between them, spread over the next four months.
To me, the 1600-metre Stewards' Cup has always been a very special race, as it not only gives our leading milers a chance to compete at top level over their best suited distance, it also attracts challenges from many middle distance performers or stayers, as the coveted Triple Crown title covers races at all three distances. It is truly a Grand Prix among the season's mile races.
Although the results of recent years suggest that genuine milers hold an edge in this race, we can expect this year's renewal to be of great quality once again, as eight runners in the twelve-strong field hold ratings of 120 or above. I'm sure that most of our racing fans' attention, however, will be focused on champion miler Good Ba Ba. After achieving a record third successive victory in last month's Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Mile, he will write a further new chapter in Hong Kong's racing history if he becomes the first horse to win the Stewards' Cup three times in a row. So let's see if he can pull off another unprecedented feat tomorrow. For the other contenders, Egyptian Ra could be the main danger as I expect the eight-year-old may get an easy lead and as such Good Ba Ba will have to make up much ground to catch him. I will also be expecting a very good run from Collection and Fellowship though in the end Good Ba Ba should still be the one to dominate this HK Group 1 event.
One race before that, the Kent & Curwen Centenary Sprint Cup promises to be equally entertaining. Sacred Kingdom has dominated our top sprint races in recent years, but has not won this Group One race for the past two seasons. Tomorrow over Sha Tin's straight course he will again be strongly tested by Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint first runner-up One World. Although the expected good-to-slow tempo of this race may not be ideal for both Sacred Kingdom and One World, they are still the two outstanding ones in the field. Among the other in-form sprinters, Brilliant Chapter should be the horse fighting for the minor places.
In addition, I'd like to thank top apparel brand Kent & Curwen for the great support they've given us in sponsoring this year's Centenary Sprint Cup. The involvement of prestigious commercial partners plays a very important role in the development of our sport.
Apart from these top local races tomorrow, racing fans would have the chance to watch some exciting action from Australia today, as we are simulcasting four races from the Coolmore Lightning Stakes Day at Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse. In the major race, the Coolmore Lightning Stakes, which is the first leg of this year's Global Sprint Challenge, you can watch the performances of some rising three-year-olds like Starspangledbanner, Headway and Irish Lights, as they take on older sprinters. I would expect a few of these budding new stars to be coming to Hong Kong for our International Races at the end of this year, so this is a good opportunity for you to get an early look at their form.
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