NEW TWO-LEGGED AND FOUR-LEGGED STARS EMERGE AT SHATIN!

This race meeting in Shatin had it all. In fact, it had so match, there were times we thought we were going to Hong Kong’s International Racing Day.

After all, Maxime Guyon had been flown in to partner the brilliant Ambitious Dragon again in the Cathay Pacific Classic Mile.

The great Felix Coetzee was flown into town to ride the Tony Cruz-trained Super Pistachio.

And what a popular jockey he is with local racing fans.

The horses running?

Apart from those mentioned, there were California Memory, Entrapment, Thumbs Up, Best City, Fay Fay, Little Bridge, Xtension, and Admiration.

There had been some key jockey changes like Gerard Mosse suddenly replacing regular pilot Zac Purton on Little Bridge.

There was Douglas Whyte, despite winning twice on Ambitious Dragon, being replaced by the magic of Guyon.

It all promised fireworks and more despite a number of very short-priced favourites.

So, how did it all unfold and did it go according to script?

Though Guyon on Lucky Nistelroy for trainer Tony Millard and Mark Du Plessis on Real Generous dominated betting in the first race, the well-rated Benefactor, given a perfect ride by the still very underrated Tye Angland led from start to finish and gave trainer Peter Ng his 11th winner out of 56 runners for the season to date resulting in a remarkable win strike rate of 20%.

Though Guyon came in third, that familiar European style could be seen- and it was an ominous sign to other jockeys. Yes, that line- “Get That Guy On My Horse” must have been going through the minds of many owners. Despite the great ride by Angland, what those around us could talk abut was the third placing by Maxime Guyon, a testament to the huge popularity the young jockey enjoys in Hong Kong.

While the HKJC’s Trackside team were talking about the team’s Darren Flindell being big and Clint Hutchison admitting that he wasn’t that big, Tye Angland, despite having all sorts of problems with his ride- the Andreas Schutz-trained Humongus, he threw everything at his mount and managed to wear down the very well-ridden Rain Of Thunder by Derek KC Leung. Both Leung and Angland, who replaced Zac Purton on Humongus gave their horses excellent rides and it’s a pity that the result wasn’t a dead-heat. Two races down and both won by Ty Angland at a 50 to 1 double. It was a great day of racing despite having to endure that AWFUL American [?] voice-over artist the HKJC uses for their promotions.

Though on the hot favourite and travelling very well, Guyon on Regal Army, never ever recovered from the bump it received from the wayward Gold Racer and was eased down. The winner came down the outside of the track in Solar Great ridden by Zac Purton, notching up the jockey’s 12th winner of the season. It was a good win by Solar Great and we would keep following it along with runner-up Gold Racer and unplaced Medallist which had been well “hidden” in the trials we had seen, was slow out of the gates and was not exactly pushed around by jockey Brett Prebble. This will win the next time it steps out.

Douglas Whyte on the red-hot favorite- Right Timing- missed the start very badly- we have no idea what happened to it- and was never ever a hope of making up the ground it lost. Instead, it was left to young apprentice Ben So to lead all the way on Solar Boy. Little Ben is riding much better this season and this was his ninth winner for the season. As for Right Timing, don’t give up on it. It will the next time. All we know is that the owners and the friends they had invited had some of the longest and most depressedfaces we had seen in a long time. When a 1.7 favourite you own, flops, what do you expect?

Despite having blinkers on for the first time and punters going to the well again, the John Size-trained Supreme Jewelry failed again- and again as the favourite. Guys, this horse is NOT much good! Taverner, ridden by Alvin Ng- remember Alvin Ng???- managed to scrape in ahead of Happy Forever ridden by Jeff Lloyd in a very tight finish. Trained by David Hall- and then left his charge to return again- we smiled to ourselves watching Brett Prebble who came third in the race aboard Peter Ng’s Real Supreme shout out something to Ng as the horses went past the winning post. It was real roughshod race. Two to follow from this race: New Glory and Super Goodies. Jeez, five races down and not even one winner for Douglas Whyte or Maxime Guyon! What was going on???

We had wondered why the owners of Little Bridge has decided to replace regular jockey Zac Purton with Gerard Mosse and we knew when the horse easily accounted for Entrapment and Admiration. Not to take anything away from Purton, but Mosse is a master when it comes to the big races. He proved why when he made it look so easy- oui oui.

While Darren Beadman whack, whack, whacked away on Admiration to come third and Whyte did all he could on hot pot Entrapment who refused to settle during a major part of the race – Little Bridge traveled so well for the French ace who rode it out hands and heels and took out the Cathay Pacific Jockey Club Sprint.

Suddenly, Hong Kong- and trainer Danny Shum and Mosse- has a real chance of taking out the upcoming International Sprint.

The Fast Track Guru warned that Matthew Chadwick would have to be at his best- and toughest- to win the Cathay Pacific Jockey Club Cup and his was a hard luck- and awkward- story. As Chadwick took him out wide to make his move, he encountered some very tough competitive riding by Darren Beadman on Irian, the horse was tightened and lost its momentum. Sometimes, one cannot “ride pretty”- and California Memory needs everything to go its own way. One mistake and it goes nowhere.

As we looked here and there, Brett Prebble on the Caspar Fownes-trained Thumbs Up swamped them all.

Hell, it won like a good thing and with Prebble standing on his irons way before the winning post.

Look at Fast Track’s Dali Picture Tip for this race: The tip was there!

DALI’S PICTURE TIPS FOR SHATIN ON SUNDAY

RACE 7

A very close second was another Cruz runner in outsider Pure Champion ridden by Douglas Whyte- a top run in such elite company- and with Irian third.

Sorry, Matthew Chadwick, but we would have loved to have seen what Gerard Mosse or Felix Coetzee would have done on California Memory.

In fact, we doubt that Chadwick will be on the horse on International Day. We hear the owners were shattered by this defeat.

But, let’s not take anything away from the win of Thumbs Up and which will now take its place in the International Vase. Yes, the International Vase!

While Irian and California Memory were having their own battle and their jockeys possibly thinking the race was between them, Brett Prebble made the most of things and gave wife Marie a very happy birthday present.

The Cathay Pacific Classic Mile? Well, what a day for Tim Clark! Just as when we all thought Maxime Guyon had got Ambitious Dragon home after a very VERY tough run and held out four wide, out came Clark on John Moore’s Destined For Glory outta the clouds to just beat him on the line!

For backers of favourites, it was a dark day in Hell. Every single one in three consecutive Cup races had been beaten. Frankly, whatever it was, there was something about the run of Ambitious Dragon today just did not make us sit up and think the horse was something special. It was, let’s be frank, a very average ride and which made a great horse look okay. Will Douglas Whyte be back on Ambitious Dragon on International Day? After all, when he rode Ambitious Dragon the last time, he had it 3 and 4 wide- and the horse still won with a leg in the air. Today? Pffffff.

Clark was on fire and made it back-to-back wins by winning Race 9 aboard Viva Freedom and has now more than shown trainers, owners and the Hong Kong public that he is not just some lightweight jockey making up the numbers. Tim Clark is a VERY good senior jockey who can mix it with the best in Hong Kong.

As for Douglas Whyte who received quite a nasty “spray” from punters after the flop of Right Timing- and which was not his fault when viewing the start of the race- he redeemed himself somewhat by taking out the last race and the Jockeys Challenge.

Frankly, to us, the Jockeys Challenge should have been either been shared by Tye Angland and Tim Clark or gone exclusively to Clark. Both rode outright winners- two each- and with Clark taking out the most important Cup race. Whyte won the Jockeys Challenge through one winner, a few placings and a full book of ride.

This Challenge needs an over-haul as Whyte did not deserve to win it.

The races today- especially, the Cup races- were meant to be dress rehearsal for International Day and when the favourites would just win. They all flopped and suddenly looked ordinary. It will certainly have trainers and owners taking huge confidence in the results and realizing that nothing is impossible. And how impossible is nothing.