Dec 23, 20173 min read

WILL IT BE A MERRY CHRISTMAS AT SHA TIN TODAY?

If taking a Six Up at Sha Tin this afternoon, it will be a Four Up if really short short priced favourites Hot King Prawn (5) in race 6 and Exultant (4) in race 9, both ridden by The Zac Attack, get up and win. And if they do win, the Six Up, Treble and even the Third Double Trio will barely buy you some dim sum and a Tsingtao at the local dai pai dong.

So, what to do? Hope at least one of them get beaten though there’s no one delivering winners better than Postman Zac. But, as we should know by now, there are no certainties in horse racing as seen by the number of $1.30 pops that bit the dust yesterday at Ipswich.

With Joao Moreira out with another suspension which one doubts bothers the mercurial Brazilian as he gets to spend a happy Felice Navidad with his family, the only other jockey to follow this afternoon other than The Cult Of Zac is Sammy Clipperton.

Having said this, though his support for one time bestie Douglas Whyte has gone forever, it’s brilliant to see the regular support Olivier Doleuze and Matthew Chadwick receive from John Size- and how this support has been rewarded by both riding winners for the master trainer on Wednesday.

The affable Frenchman might be looking at his last season of racing in Hong Kong- a pity as he’s one of the nice guys in racing, but age catches up with everyone- though we’re seeing a far more focused and determined Matty Chadwick. His winning ride on Wednesday was one of the rides of the season.

It might not be this season, but we’re tipping the former champion Hong Kong apprentice to be right up there in the Jockey Premiership in much the same way that Derek Leung has come of age this season. And what more can one say about the rider that hasn’t already been said? With another winner on Wednesday, he’s now an outright fourth in the jockey standings and has proven that he’s not just good as a local jockey, he’s a very good jockey who could easily make his mark internationally.

He must be making some of the expat jockeys riding here nervous as nothing lasts forever and one is only as good as that last win- and those wins better happen consistently.

It’s very interesting to be told what the all-important Chinese racing media is saying and then ask local owners why they don’t use this or that jockey and be told, “I don’t like his face.” It’s a funny old place that’s often like that song “Spinning Wheel” about “What goes up must go down.”

Having said all this, surely it’s about being you being on the winning side of your ledger?Jockeys and trainers can look after themselves very well and many are set for life. With its 15 percent in taxes, and unique lifestyle, Hong Kong has been good to many.

So what about this afternoon at Sha Tin? Not being in town, we asked one of the luckiest people we know when it comes to Six Up bets who knows absolutely nothing about form and handicaps etc etc to see if she can steer us towards some Christmas cheer.