Moreira conquers on Rome in LONGINES Hong Kong Cup

Hong Kong’s premier jockey elect and latest ‘poster boy’ Joao Moreira roared with delight and waved exuberantly to the crowd as he returned to scale after a heart-stopping win on DESIGNS ON ROME in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m).

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  DESIGNS ON ROME wins the LONGINES Hong Kong Cup

It was, perhaps, partially a reaction to his relief at taking the coveted prize by just a short head from chief premiership rival Zac Purton aboard Military Attack – especially as Moreira conceded he thought he’d been beaten.

But more likely his exuberance reflected the significance of the day for him and the winner’s trainer John Moore as they had combined, just 40 minutes earlier, to also win the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile with Able Friend.

If Able Friend’s win was effortless, then that of Designs On Rome was in marked contrast but nonetheless impressive given the quality of the vanquished Military Attack who was formerly trained by Moore but now resides with Caspar Fownes.

Moreira was hard at work on Designs On Rome from the half way mark. “That’s the sort of horse he is. I learned a lot about him in my two previous rides on him. You’ve got to get going early with him but you know he’ll keep responding and he did that today,” Moreira said.

And if anyone doubted the quality of this year’s HKG1 Hong Kong Derby form then it was well and truly erased after this afternoon’s meeting as Designs On Rome and Able Friend quinellaed that March feature.

Designs On Rome has now had four starts over the 2000m course at Sha Tin for wins in the Cup, the Derby and in the G1 QEII Cup and while he’ll continue to race in Hong Kong, Moore hopes that he will join Able Friend campaigning in Dubai in the new year.

“We had set him for this,” Moore said, “and I said all week I was confident he would peak for this race. Joao (Moreira) had him stoked up at the right time and he was very tough. It was an excellent win and I’d be keen to campaign him overseas.”

Moreira described his International Day success as a ‘dream come true’ after he was suspended and missed the corresponding day last year and he was full of praise for Designs On Rome. “He’s an amazing horse. He gave me a great kick today and was so strong through the line,” he said.

Zac Purton was gracious in narrow defeat. “My horse ran great but the winner’s a very good horse and there were no excuses. He just got us today,” Purton said.

Former Hong Kong trainer David Hayes, now training back in his native Australia, was delighted with the third placed performance of his charge Criterion. He filled the minor placing behind the ‘locals’ just as was the case in the Sprint and the Mile with internationals finishing third behind a Hong Kong trained quinella.

“He was the first international home and he ran very well, “ Hayes said of Criterion, “if he’d drawn in and got some cover early, who knows, he might have won. He raced to a different pattern today and gave a great kick. I’m very happy.”

The winning time was 2m 1.96s.

Former champion Douglas Whyte, 13 times the Hong Kong premiership winner, had a remarkable day as he rode four winners on the undercard and finished second in three of the day’s Group 1 events. Among his winners were the exciting four-year-old’s Got Fly and Giant Treasure, both trained by Richard Gibson, who provided three legs of Whyte’s four-timer.

ABLE FRIEND powers to sensational victory in G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile

ABLE FRIEND produced what can only be described as a stunning performance when storming to victory in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile at Sha Tin this afternoon (Sunday, 14 December).

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  ABLE FRIEND takes the LONGINES Hong Kong Mile

At HK$23 million it is the world’s richest turf race over this distance and Able Friend and jockey Joao Moreira had read the script perfectly, winning by a race-record margin of four and a quarter lengths.

Gold-Fun kept on bravely after looking likely to be swallowed up in the straight after leading for most of the way. He finished second, just ahead of the Japanese pair of Grand Prix Boss and World Ace. Last year’s winner Glorious Days ran a brave fifth on his first start since June.

But the race was all about Able Friend. Trainer John Moore had insisted that the five-year-old would improve even from his remarkable victory in the G2 Jockey Club Mile last month, something that most observers had barely thought possible. But Moore’s uncanny knack of producing a horse at his real peak on the biggest occasion of all was again in evidence.

Fast away, Moreira settled right back as Gold-Fun and Secret Sham tussled for the lead. At one point Gold-Fun had kicked clear and as the field swung for home there was just a moment when Able Friend might be in trouble. But the horse had the speed to get in the right position and his closing 200m was really spectacular as he flew past rivals who were left struggling for the place-money.

Moore, winning the LONGINES Hong Kong Mile for the second time after Able One’s victory in 2011, said: “To see the facile win today was just amazing and I’m just a very lucky person. This horse has a turn of foot as he can relax through his races. He’s not spending a penny – you just show him daylight and he’s got an explosive kick. Some of the horses today were serious horses and I think I’ve got one of the better milers on the planet.

“It will be the Stewards’ Cup next and I’ll do my utmost to convince the owner to go for the Dubai Duty Free but that might be a long lunch and a lot of alcohol. We’re so happy we’ve got him in the yard and we look forward to better things,” he said.

Moreira, clear leader in the current Hong Kong jockey standings, summed up the brilliance of this performance: “The way he’s won, coming from a long way back, passing by them and not even being hit by the whip – wow! He’s such an amazing horse. He has a great turn of foot and the way he won today gives me the feeling that he’s the best horse I’ve ever sat on.

“I was never worried in the race and knew exactly what I was doing,” he continued. “I have a lot of faith in this horse and knew he was just going to come over the top of them. He has that kind of stride, a really big stride, that I knew that if he put it all together he was just going to run over the top.”

Gold-Fun’s trainer Richard Gibson said: “We tried different tactics but we still got beaten by a champion horse and all credit to the winner. We’re very proud of our guy today. He stuck on well at the end.”

Gold-Fun’s jockey Douglas Whyte has had a rewarding but frustrating afternoon, finishing second on all his three rides at Hong Kong’s big day.

AEROVELOCITY leads home Hong Kong one-two in LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint

Aerovelocity made just about every yard of the running to land the HK$18.5 million G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) under a confident ride from Zac Purton for trainer Paul O’Sullivan. He was chased home by the three-year-old Peniaphobia under Douglas Whyte, but the Tony Cruz-trained rising star in the Hong Kong sprinting ranks could not reel in the wire to wire winner.

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  AEROVELOCITY lands the LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint

The tale of the race was a simple one. Purton broke Aerovelocity alertly from gate seven and took an early lead from the Australian hope, Buffering, who was never able to get to the lead as had been anticipated ahead of the race. Meanwhile Whyte had a good position on Peniaphobia in third, just behind the two leaders. Hong Kong’s other main hope, Lucky Nine, the winner of the race in 2011 raced handy early on but never looked comfortable in the race and faded out of contention to finish 11th.

Purton controlled the race from the front, setting early fractions of 23.36s and 22.31, before setting sail for home and completing the final 400 metres in 22.90s, stopping the clock in 1m 08.57s. Douglas Whyte chased him hard all the way down the stretch, but was a neck adrift at the line.

Afterwards a delighted Zac Purton said: “At the furlong marker he wanted to hang in and get up on the fence, which is a trait of his, but he wanted to do it more so today than he had done previously, so I was a bit worried that he was going to take the fence on, rather than go forward. I managed to keep him off it enough and keep him going forward. It was a tough effort.

“It wasn’t the plan to go and lead,” he went on, “but when you jump that well and the opportunity is there, you have to take it. I have led on him previously and he can be ridden like that, so I wasn’t worried about it. It took him about a year to settle in here, and as you can see he can be a bit of a head case. Once he started to enjoy it, his racing began to improve.”

Trainer Paul O’Sullivan said: “He got a nice run, he got left alone in front, it was a good ride on a good horse. It has been a long time since the last big one, so hopefully we won’t have to wait so long for the next one. You get one good horse and it can turn it all around.”

Douglas Whyte was full of praise for the runner-up: “He ran a terrific race and we have no excuse once again. It was still a great performance from my horse.”

Japan’s Straight Girl ran a tremendous race from gate 13 to get up for third having raced in mid-division, while Gordon Lord Byron ran on for a another fourth place finish, having twice finished in the same spot in the LONGINES Hong Kong Mile in 2012 and 2013.

FLINTSHIRE obliges in LONGINES Hong Kong Vase

Flintshire went into the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase 5lb clear of his rivals on a LONGINES World’s Best Racehorse Rankings mark of 124, and the highest rated horse at this year’s LONGINES Hong Kong International Races duly claimed a deserved victory in the 2400m contest. But the French colt was forced to dig deep in the closing stages as local hope Willie Cazals mounted a strong challenge.

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  FLINTSHIRE wins the LONGINES Hong Kong Vase

The win was a second in the Vase for trainer Andre Fabre, who scored with Borgia in 1999, but it was the first for owner Prince Khalid Abdullah, who had seen his famous colours carried to second place at the event on four previous occasions.

“It’s really important to get a win on the board and it’s thrilling,” said the Prince’s racing manager, Lord Grimthorpe. “We’ve had some near misses with the likes of Polish Summer and Cityscape, and to nail it today with Flintshire is just fantastic.

“I was yelling from the stands ‘would you go on’ but he has got a good turn of foot, this horse and he was travelling pretty smoothly,” he continued. “But I think he’d have liked a faster pace. It worked out really well. Maxime gave him a super ride. There were no problems in running and he came through very nicely in the end.”

Hong Kong runner Khaya set steady fractions in front and most of the field was travelling with relative ease as the 11 runners turned for home. Japanese raider Curren Mirotic was the first to press the leader, but his challenge soon faded and it was Flintshire, under Maxime Guyon, who raced to the lead 250m out. The Dansili four-year-old kept on well as the Tony Cruz-trained Willie Cazals delivered his trademark late rattle under Douglas Whyte to get within half a length at the wire. Khaya hung on for third, a length and a quarter back. The winning time was 2m 29.83s.

Flintshire was landing his second G1 win to go with his success in the 2013 Grand Prix de Paris, but his triumph was reward for three second-place finishes at the highest level this year in the Coronation Cup, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and Breeders’ Cup Turf.

“He stays in training next season and that’s very exciting for us,” added Lord Grimthorpe. “He’ll probably have an international campaign again.”

Maxime Guyon, whose previous biggest Hong Kong win came in the 2011 HKG1 Hong Kong Derby on Ambitious Dragon, was delighted with the win.

“You are always a bit under pressure when you’re riding such a favourite, especially after two second places at the highest level,” he said. “But you have to focus on your race and once the gates open, you try to do your job as well as you can.

“We ended up pretty far away in the backstretch but I followed Red Cadeaux, knowing that he’d need to start moving early. We eventually came about the frontline in the last turn and I was happy to let him go then. He accelerated without failing, even though he sort of idled once he hit the front.

“It’s nice to win after these second places. Flintshire had a point to make here. We knew that all he needed was the proper ground to give his best. It is a great day for me as I come back here in two weeks for a six weeks stint and that puts my name in the news at the right time,” he said.

Douglas Whyte said of Willie Cazals: “Great run but the winner was too good. We were there to snap him up but Flintshire fought back and was just too strong.”

fonte : HKJC

GOING: TURF: GOOD TO FIRM.

fonte : RacingPost 

DOMENICA 14 DICEMBRE 2014. Hong Kong International Races: Designs Of Rome a segno nella Cup, Flintshire meritato G1 nel Vase. Ecco il report completo

 

 

 

Domenica mattina di grandi appuntamenti ad oriente. Ad Hong Kong sono andate in scena 10 corse, ma con le 4 internationali che hanno lanciato nomi soprattutto locali, ed un solo europeo a segno. Ecco il report completo della mattinata a caldo, in attesa di ulteriori approfondimenti a freddo.

Hong Kong Vase – Gruppo 1 – 2.400 m – HK$16.500.000: Giusto premio alla costanza perFlintshire (Dansili) il quale, dopo il secondo posto nell’Arc de Triomphe G1 e nella Breeders Cup Turf G1, non ha trovato sulla sua strada razzi atomici ma solo l’amico terreno scorrevole sul quale ha sviluppato il passo da cavallo importante venendo dall’esterno forte in fondo per piegare Mirco Demuro che aveva tentato a portarli a spasso in avanti in sella aKhaya (Librettist), finito poi terzo, mentre il portacolori Juddmonte si è trascinato per il secondo Willie Cazals (Aussie Rules). Tutto come da copione dunque per il cavallo allenato da Andre Fabre (che nei giorni scorsi è stato designato allenatore del fratello pieno di Frankel) che rimarrà in allenamento anche nel 2015, a 5 anni. IL VIDEO DEL VASE QUI. RISULTATO COMPLETO QUI. Hong Kong Sprint – Gruppo 1 – 1.200 m – HK$18.500.000: Rivincita del cavallo redento. Quasi inspiegabilmente a picco nella preparazione del Jockey Club Sprint G2 3 settimane fa, il neozelandese Aerovelocity (Pins), con Zac Purton in sella, si è ampiamente rifatto nel giorno dei giorni schizzando subito in testa dalla gabbia 7 e rimanendo tutto il tempo senza polvere in faccia, facendo incrociare le gambe a Lucky Nine (Dubawi), l’atteso Buffering (Mossman), il singaporeno Spalato (Elusive City) ed il passato Sole Power (Kyllachy). Insomma, roba locale. Battuto di un nonnulla Peniaphobia (Dandy Man) con al terzo la giapponese Straight Girl (Fuji Kiseki) ed al quarto Gordon Lord Byron (Byron). IL VIDEO DELLO SPRINT QUI. RISULTATO COMPLETO QUI.

 

 

 

Hong Kong Mile – Gruppo 1 – 1.600 m – HK$23.000.000: Di un’altra lega. Able Friend(Shamardal) ha dimostrato di appartenere ad un’altra categoria nonostante lo steccato largo. Il figlio di Shamardal allenato da John Moore e con in sella Joao Moreira, ha gigioneggiato fino ai 200 quando ha cambiato marcia su cavalli comunque fermi e si è isolato di 4 lunghezze e mezzo dando l’opportunità al suo jockey di sistemarsi gli occhialini, mettersi in posa per la foto e mandare baci alla tribuna. L’altra corsa, quella dei cavalli fermi, l’ha vinta Gold Fun (Le Vie Dei Colori) nei confronti del giapponese Grand Prix Boss(Sakura Bakushin O). Ritirato prima della corsa, causa zoppia, il vecchio Ambitious Dragon(Pins). A parte Able Friend, sembrava una corsa tra combattenti e reduci. IL VIDEO DEL MILE QUI. RISULTATO COMPLETO QUI.

Hong Kong Cup – Gruppo 1 – 2.000 m – HK$25.000.000: Ancora Joao “meravigliao” Moreira. Nel periodo quello che tocca diventa ora. Si vabbè, con Able Friend ha fatto il passeggero, qui ha dovuto sudarsela con Designs of Rome (Holy Roman Emperor), un cavallo comunque al top per portarla a casa nei confronti dell’altro locale Military Attack (Oratorio) e Criterion (Sebring) che ha anticipato parecchio per tentare l’acchiappo grosso. Più indietro Designs, con prima parte di gara lenta in 1m 04s i primi 1000 metri, e lui che quasi sembrava non impegnarsi nelle retrovie. All’ingresso in retta un respirone ed una bella progressione per andare a prendere quelli davanti e battere il Militare. Cirrus ha corso con onore ma è finito solo quarto, confermando la maledizione di questa corsa, mentre ancora quasi vicino al miracolo Mirco Demuro con l’estrema outsider Helene Super Star(War Front), finito quinto. Benino Farraaj (Dubai Destination) ma al momento di tirare fuori il fritto sono usciti i limiti di un cavallo comunque buono, ma non ancora eccezionale. IL VIDEO DELLA HONG KONG CUP QUI. RISULTATO COMPLETO QUI

Quanto ai nostri: Per Mirco Demuro una serie impressionante di piazzamenti, per Andrea Atzeni una vittoria nella sesta corsa, il Canberra Handicap su Let Me Go (Dubawi), il resto del convegno è in fase di svolgimento.

 

PUBBLICATO DA GABRIELE CANDI A DOMENICA, DICEMBRE 14, 2014