Golden Samurai channels Golden Sixty to snap Lui’s longest run of outs since 2019

A young galloper carrying the colours synonymous with Golden Sixty snapped Francis Lui Kin-wai’s longest run of outs since the 2018-19 season and bagged the first of two victories at Sha Tin on Saturday for both the trainer and jockey Vincent Ho Chak-yiu.

Golden Samurai’s unexpected win in the Class Four JC Volunteer Together Handicap (1,200m) – he started as the $21 sixth favourite – was Lui’s first success since Lucky Gold was the second leg of a Hong Kong Derby Day double for the 64-year-old handler.

Between the victories of Lucky Gold on March 19 and Golden Samurai on Saturday, Lui saddled 46 losers in a row – the trainer’s worst sequence since his barren run from late November 2018 to early January 2019 during which he went 71 runners without a winner.

Three lengths behind pacesetter Marvel Dragon as the field entered the home straight, Golden Samurai covered the final 400m in 22.65 seconds to pip the long-time leader by a nose.

Not only did Golden Samurai break Lui’s drought but also he became the first galloper other than Golden Sixty to send owner Stanley Chan Ka-leung to the winner’s enclosure since Golden Cannon won a Class Five mile at Happy Valley in January 2019.

Golden Samurai was not a cheap acquisition. Lui spent A$500,000 (HK$2.63 million) to buy Golden Samurai at the 2020 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale after Coolmore had pinhooked him for A$120,000 at the 2019 Magic Millions Gold Coast National Weanling Sale.

Asked what attracted him to Golden Samurai, Lui said: “He’s got a good pedigree, and he’s a good-looking horse. Of course, I bought him online [during Covid-19]. A friend of mine overseas inspected him for me.”

After going four weeks between winners, Lui only had to wait two hours for Forever Glorious to parlay Golden Samurai’s victory into a welcome double.

The bottom weight in the Class Four Beijing Clubhouse Anniversary Cup (1,800m), Forever Glorious was able to settle in the most advanced position of his 13-start career, second, just outside Oscar Glory.

Whereas Oscar Glory gave ground in the home straight, Forever Glorious kept galloping strongly under Ho when the whips were cracking, holding on to score his second 1,800m success – his first occurred at Happy Valley on December 28 – by one length from Gold Tack.

Lui has campaigned Forever Glorious in races ranging from 1,400m to 2,200m across both surfaces, but he is likely to enter him in more 1,800m events and hope for maps similar to that of Saturday’s contest.

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“Normally, he doesn’t have that gate speed,” Lui said of Forever Glorious. “Only one horse wanted to lead, and it was easy for him to follow the pace. He’s quite even, and I think this distance suits him.”

Lui’s double improved his tally to 37 wins this term and lifted him above Caspar Fownes into sixth place in this season’s trainers’ championship.

Ho’s double consolidated his second position in the jockeys’ title race, his 63 victories 19 more than those achieved by third-ranked rider Hugh Bowman.

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