Chad Schofield’s chances of finishing his Hong Kong stint with a winner have received a considerable boost, with the 27-year-old picking up the ride aboard Cordyceps Six after Jerry Chau Chun-lok was stood down from his rides on Saturday.
The Jockey Club confirmed Chau “sustained an injury to his left hand [on Friday] evening which required stitching”, with Schofield one of the beneficiaries of the young star’s misfortune after trainer Richard Gibson took the chance to give him the Cordyceps Six ride.
“It’s nice to go to the races with a winning chance, and a big winning chance too,” Schofield said. “He’s got the perfect draw and the horse has been really racing well, he’s been impressive his last two starts and he’s drawn the right side of the track and he’s going to have every chance.”
Cordyceps Six jumps from barrier 14 in the Class Three Opal Handicap (1,000m) at Sha Tin on Sunday and he is looking to make it three wins on the trot after his last victory came at the expense of boom sprinter Nervous Witness.
Still a three-year-old, Cordyceps Six takes on another smart up and comer in the Tony Cruz-trained Super Fortune, who won impressively on debut, while Run Run Cool, Metro Warrior and Seizing The Moment also have claims.
The addition of Cordyceps Six doubles Schofield’s hand at his final meeting before jetting out for Australia, with the David Hayes-trained The Multiplier an outside chance at best in the Class Four Onyx Handicap (1,400m).
While Schofield looks to have snagged the quality among Chau’s rides, Ruan Maia has the quantity after picking up Super Fast, Elite Patch and debutant Rise Brethren.
Antoine Hamelin steps up to partner Unicornbaby and Blake Shinn climbs aboard Will Power for the Class Two Carbine Club of Hong Kong 30th Anniversary Cup (1,200m) on the all-weather track.
Meanwhile, trainer Frankie Lor Fu-chuen confirmed that Healthy Happy will be withdrawn from next Sunday’s Group One Hong Kong Mile after not running since June.
Healthy Happy moved well in a trial at Sha Tin on Friday morning but Lor has decided against throwing the five-year-old in the deep end against the likes of Golden Sixty and Japanese raider Danon Kingly.
“In his first start for so long it looks too hard for him, first-up I don’t want to leave him with a bad memory,” Lor said of Healthy Happy, who won February’s Classic Cup.
“But his trial was much improved from his last trial, it looked good to me, and if everything is OK I’ll give him one more trial and then on January 1 there is a Group Three over 1,400m.”
Matthew Poon confident Super Fortune will be better again as trio of debut winners return
Healthy Happy’s withdrawal will leave Lor with only one Group One runner at next week’s Longines Hong Kong International Races, with shock Jockey Club Cup victor Reliable Team poised to go off as one of the outsiders in the Vase (2,400m).
“I think the distance should be no problem and at 2,400m the pace looks like it should be better for him,” Lor said.
Seven wins clear at the top of the trainers’ premiership, Lor heads to Sha Tin this weekend with a seven-strong book headlined by Infinite Power and Run Run Cool.
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