STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH
There we were thinking, bland race card equals bland racing, but, Good Golly Miss Molly, what surreal fireworks there were on and off the track on Sunday at Shatin!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQ7drIDV88w
Everything centered around the successful betting plunge on the Richard Gibson-trained and Derek Leung-ridden Winfull Patrol which was backed from $210 to $50- actually, pretty close to its real price. (The Fast Tracker DID hint very broadly that Leung was in line for a big win on Sunday after going through a barren spell.)
The aftermath of the race saw- and heard- jockeys Tye Angland and Olivier Doleuze come close to a mild heat of the moment smack down in the view of the Stewards, which cost each $20,000 in fines for misconduct.
Boys will be boys- better than boys will be girlie men.
For the Frenchman, who is stable rider for Gibson, but was riding first-starter and the very exciting Our Folks, the runner-up in the race, it was his first day back after a suspension.
To get another one for careless riding in that he cut across the Angland-ridden Brave Brother- the favorite for the race- must have made Doleuze feel like merde, but c’est la vie.
Adding to the drama while the throngs of local punters and conspiracy theorists went, “Diiiiiuuuuuu” and “team riding”, respectively, under their breath, Matthew Chadwick was questioned about his ride on front-runner Multi-Express which was snagged back in the race and where, some feel, he almost gift-wrapped the “right of passage” to Wishfull Patrol.
Whatever…
But, hey, that’s all Wishful La La right now with hindsight being a horse’s arse.
Meanwhile, despite a blistering attack on him by the influential Apple Daily for failing on a number of favorites at the previous meeting- like Brett Prebble and Douglas Whyte before him have had thrown their way- Zac Purton answered his critics in the best way possible: riding winners.
In fact, Purton won FOUR wins by Race 6- FOUR wins outta his six rides for the day.
Magic Man Moreira who looked to have a superb book of rides- on paper- couldn’t even pull one rabbit outta his sombrero.
That’s racing and there’s nothing magical about it and, hopefully, all this Magic Man talk and Yeezus Christ Superstar bollocks start to fade to black along with the belief that Joao Moreira can walk on water and feed the forty thousand.
Let’s take the pressure off the very good Brazilian jockey and not lose him back to Swingabore.
Hong Kong racing is certainly not Singapore racing and no amount of magic- real or with mirrors- is gonna conjure up winners.
On a completely different note, Music Rocks The Valley starts tonight at the races.
The only smack downs will be a Rap Off in the Beer Garden while there will also be The Happy Wednesday Bang Bang Dancers gyrating to DJ Ricky Stone- never heard of him- the extremely popular Ben Semmens Band and, of course, all the rocking, rolling and reeling in the winners on the track.
As for thoughts on the races tonight, here goes with The Fast Tracker’s choices while The Third Dividend from Oz own thoughts and our man from the Big Apple believes tonight to be pretty straight forward.
THE FAST TRACKER ROCKS THRU TONIGHT’S RACES.
R1 FRIENDS OF YAN OI/SHANGHAI PIONEER/ALL TIMES LUCKY
With racing taking place on the B Course, one can never be certain if the inside barriers will be advantageous, especially during the earlier races, and then, after the track is rolled after race 5, the sweepers will come to the fore. And that’s what makes racing at Happy Valley such a confusing lottery.
R2 NOBODY BUT YOU/DOUBLE MASTER
Nobody But You is always entered for these 1000m sprints and, for tonight, drawn reasonably and with apprentice Alvin Ng, below, desperately needing a winner to double his tally for the season, the horse should, at least place.
The oddly named Gentillis- no relation to Syphillis- takes its place in the field while Zac Purton jumps aboard first-starter Lovely Delovely which might be way under the odds and can win without my money.
R3 CROESUS/SUPREME FLIGHT/HAPPY CHAMPION
Local celebrity spotters will be hoping that Actor Aaron Kwok, who turns up for even the opening of an envelope, shows up for this race where his horse Calling With Love runs.
I doubt it, as drawn barrier 12 and running over 1200 metres, the galloper looks like just going around to check out the scenery and take a drop in the ratings.
Wait for this one at Shatin and over 1600m.
R4 EXPECTATOR/PLAIN RED BANNER
With Joao Moreira on the John Size-trained Golden Addiction, this is sure to start as one of the favorites- but which I can’t see winning the race.
Though drawn an outside barrier tonight, the galloper seems to suffer from brain freeze when on the inside of horses and I’m unsure if it really WANTS to win.
I’d rather wait to be “addicted” when the horse runs on the wider Shatin track.
Personally, apart from Expectator, I’ll be banking on Plain Red Banner with Nico Pinna aboard who’s won on it before.
With the Italian jockey suddenly hitting his straps and attracting more rides, it’s a pity that he’s coming to the end of his stint in Hong Kong.
The confused and confusing Little Rainforest is also entered in this race with regular pilot Matty Chadwick aboard and one just never knows how the horse will be ridden- on the pace which seems to suit it, or off the pace, which just doesn’t make any sense- or takes off in the middle of the race like Tom Cruise does in every movie he’s in.
Drawn barrier one, Chadwick should take it to the front, get a big lead out there and it might just hang in there for a place in a tough leg of the Six Up and Triple Trio.
R5 RAINBOW CHIC/OUTDOOR PEGASUS
A mind-blowing race as there are so many changes in the jockeys merry-go-round in this small field for the Group 3 January Cup.
For example, Tye Angland sticks with topweight Endowing instead of another of his regular rides- the in-form Little Dreams which goes to Matty Chadwick whereas John Moore has two runners- and with neither of them ridden by his Go To jockeys- Douglas Whyte, Weichong Marwing or Brett Prebble.
Instead, Same World, which takes a class drop goes to Moreira- how long he will be on Moore’s horses is a real Fifi of a question- and Business As Usual races up a class with Derek “The Plunger” Leung, below, aboard.
I’d forget both horses.
R6 RIYADH/ROYAL PARTNER/FLYING UNICORN
The easiest leg of the Triple Trio. Don’t laugh, Santa.
R7 SWIFT SHADOW/HAWTHORNE/ALL WIN BOY
Woah, Dougie Whyte actually retains a ride for John Size, who, I think, will rue the fact that he didn’t stick with his long-time partner.
Some of the recent rides by other jocks on Size runners have been pretty average and here’s hoping Whyte wins on Swift Shadow just for old times sake.
R8 YEE CHEONG STAR/DISTILL
The only reason I have Distill up there is ‘cos trainer Benno Yung has given the galloper more of a make-over than Joan Rivers- and Dougie Whyte has jumped aboard- not on top of Joan Rivers, of course.
If not for all these changes- hopefully not cosmetic changes- I’d stick with Yee Cheong Star, Supreme Essence and Emperor Claudius and hope for the best as there is a small Six Up Jackpot to win.
BEST BET- R4 PLAIN RED BANNER (3) NEXT BEST- RACE 5 RAINBOW CHIC (3) LONGSHOT- RACE 2 NOBODY BUT YOU (1)
SIX UP
R3- 3-4-5 R4- 3 R5- 2 R6- 1-6-11 R7- 2-4-12 R8- 3-4
—————————–
PARTING SHOT
—————————–
TONIGHT’S SELECTIONS FOR HAPPY VALLEY (FROM THE THIRD DIVIDEND)
HAPPY VALLEY (HONG KONG) Wed, 8/1/14 #HValley Night Races @HKJC_Racing Weather: Mainly cloudy. Mist patches with light winds at first. Appreciably cooler as winds strengthening from the north with one or two rain patches in the afternoon. Temperatures will fall to around 15 degrees tonight. Source: http://www.hko.gov.hk/contente.htm
Race 1: PATERSON HCP CL5 1 – Friends Of Yan Oi (3) 2 – Novel Start (1) 3 – Shanghai Pioneer (4) 4 – Serendipity (7)
Race 2: CLEVELAND HCP CL4 1 – Nobody But You (1) 2 – Double Master (3) 3 – Lovely Delovely (5) 4 – Ocean Roar (12)
Race 3: GREAT GEORGE HCP CL4 1 – Happy Champion (5) 2 – Capital K (8) 3 – Croesus (3) 4 – Make It (9)
Race 4: KINGSTON HCP CL4 1 – Expectator (7) 2 – Plain Red Banner (3) 3 – Golden Addiction (1) 4 – Tai Po Fortune (12)
Race 5 (Q1): THE JANUARY CUP HCP – HK GROUP THREE 1 – Rainbow Chic (3) 2 – Little Dreams (5) 3 – Endowing (1) 4 – Business As Usual (8)
Race 6 (Q2): CAUSEWAY HCP CL3 1 – Royal Partner (6) 2 – Riyadh (11) 3 – Noble Boy (2) 4 – Ongoing Volatility (9)
Race 7 (Q3): CANNON HCP CL3 1 – Swift Shadow (4) 2 – All Win Boy (12) 3 – Rainbow Fighter (10) 4 – Hawthorne (2)
Race 8 (Q4): CAUSEWAY HCP CL3 (SEC 2) 1 – First Sight Love (5) 2 – Supreme Essence (3) 3 – Yee Cheong Star (4) 4 – Mighty K (7)
Best Bet Race 6: Royal Partner (6)
Next Best Race 3: Happy Champion (5)
Value Bet Race 2: Nobody But You (1)
Long Shot Race 2: Ocean Roar (12)
Quaddie ($100 gets you 39%) 1.3.5.8 2.6.9.11 2.4.10.12 3.4.5.7
Six Up 3.7 6.11 1.3.5 6.11 4 3.5
———————————-
SELECTIONS FROM THE BIG APPLE (@SW064351)
BEST BET Race 7, No. 4 Swift Shadow Rattled home to just miss after Hawthorne received all the favours. Can open account.
SECOND BEST Race 8, No. 1 Flying Elite Raced three-wide without cover when one paced behind Majestic Anthem. Worth another chance.
LONGSHOT Race 5, No. 8 Business As Usual Loves the city course and is on the minimum. Will be in it for a long way.
LAY Race 2, No. 5 Lovely Delovely Unproven and lines up against experienced types here. Under the odds.
QUADDIE 1,2,3,8,9 / 2,6,11 / 4,10 / 1,5,7. $100 for 111.11%.
Comments