Richard Gibson is looking forward to what this season holds with star sprinters Wellington and Cordyceps Six, confirming he couldn’t be happier with how they are placed ahead of their return to the races.
Cordyceps Six hit the line nicely to finish fourth in a Happy Valley trial on Saturday morning and will make his seasonal debut in the Group Three National Day Cup (1,000m) on October 1.
The four-year-old closed out last season with victory in the Group Three Sha Tin Vase (1,200m), saluting in his first appearance in open company to improve his record to five wins from nine starts for the campaign.
“I was happy, it was a nice trial,” Gibson said of Cordyceps Six, who climbed 47 points in the ratings in 2021-22. “What he’s achieved as a young horse is nothing short of exceptional, so anything he does in future is a bonus.”
While Gibson is only hopeful Cordyceps Six will prove himself at the top level, he knows what to expect from Hong Kong’s premier speedster, Wellington, who won both the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup and the Chairman’s Sprint Prize last season.
While Wellington only had one run in the lead-up to last year’s Group One Hong Kong Sprint after experiencing lameness, this season he will resume in the Group Two Premier Bowl (1,200m) under handicap conditions on October 23 before tackling November’s Group Two Jockey Club Sprint (1,200m).
“We’re very happy with his break, he’s done well and we’re happy with him at this early stage of the season,” Gibson said. “He’s going to trial on [September 27] and we’re looking forward to the season.”
Teetan’s hasty hat-trick
Karis Teetan piled on three winners in a matter of about 70 minutes at Sha Tin on Sunday, ringing up a running treble thanks to victories for President’s Choice, Baebae Tsoi and Setanta.
“I thought I had OK rides, I just tried to do my best and things worked out. I feel like it’s tough to get rides, but with the rides I’m getting, it’s really nice to get a result early in the season,” Teetan said.
Teetan’s first two winners came in sunny conditions before Setanta dug deep to salute in driving rain as thunder and lightning engulfed Sha Tin and forced the final three races back 15 minutes.
The win of President’s Choice was Michael Chang Chun-wai’s second from three meetings to start the season, with the veteran handler hitting the ground running after failing to meet the trainers’ benchmark in the past two campaigns.
“Last season towards the end his horses were running so well and they have picked up nicely again this season and it was nice to win on that horse again,” said Teetan, who produced a sublime ride from gate 12 to lead all the way aboard Frankie Lor Fu-chuen’s $23 chance, Baebae Tsoi.
“From the outside gate, I just had to make sure I didn’t use too much petrol from the start and he got to the front and he came back and had an easy section. He had a light weight on his back and it worked out nicely.”
Yiu gains the Ascendency
Ricky Yiu Poon-fai took the outright lead in the trainers’ championship with his second double of the season, enjoying success with Winwin Thirtythree and Mr Ascendency.
Mr Ascendency notched his first Hong Kong win at start eight in the Class Three Hing Wah Handicap (1,400m) after two wins in Britain pre-import, saluting under Silvestre de Sousa.
“This horse is very genuine and tries hard. The jockey came back from the UK and he knows this horse’s form and his character and he runs really well for him,” Yiu said.
While Mr Ascendency struggled as a $207 chance in this year’s Hong Kong Derby (2,000m), Yiu is confident the four-year-old has plenty more to give at shorter trips.
“He was on reserve and one or two pulled out, so it was kind of by accident that he ran in the Derby,” the veteran trainer said. “No way does he get the 2,000m trip. Even though he won over 1,400m today, I think his best trip will be over a mile.”
De Sousa notched a winner for the third straight meeting after returning to the Hong Kong ranks this season but was hit with his second suspension, receiving a two-meeting ban for careless riding aboard Mr Ascendency.
Joyful jaunt
One-time Hong Kong hype horse Joyful Fortune has turned in a similar debut performance on Australian soil to the one he produced at Sha Tin just over two years ago.
A four-and-three-quarter-length winner down the Sha Tin straight in July 2020 when unveiled by David Hall, Joyful Fortune put four-and-a-quarter lengths on runner-up Decent Raine at Flemington on Sunday afternoon in his first start for Mark Newnham.
Joyful Fortune’s ability was the talk of Sha Tin trackwork for weeks leading up to his debut, and while he delivered as a $1.8 shot on his first racetrack appearance, things didn’t exactly go swimmingly from there.
After a second and an 11th in two further starts under Hall, Joyful Fortune had four starts for Tony Cruz for one win before connections opted to send the galloper back to Australia.
After racing on good or good-to-firm tracks in every one of his Hong Kong starts, Joyful Fortune looked to appreciate the heavy 10 Flemington surface on his way to victory as a $2.2 chance.
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