Last year’s star graduate seeks Happy Valley hat-trick ahead of this year’s Hong Kong International Sale
Nordic Dragon, the star graduate of the 2022 Hong Kong International Sale, could give a timely boost to the Jockey Club’s promotion of this year’s catalogue by completing a Happy Valley hat-trick on Wednesday.
With permit holders soon able to inspect the 18 lots ahead of the June 30 sale at Sha Tin, Nordic Dragon lines up in Wednesday’s Class Two The Cricket Club Valley Stakes (1,200m) at the city circuit, seeking his first win in the grade, third victory on the bounce and fifth success in eight career starts.
Edmond Yue Kwok-yin purchased Nordic Dragon for HK$7 million at last year’s sale – only another Danny Shum Chap-shing-trained galloper, HK$7.8m buy Denfield, was more expensive than the Starspangledbanner gelding – and his first-season earnings, which include the HK$1m International Sale Griffin bonus he banked when he won a Class Three contest on his second appearance, will exceed HK$6m if he wins Wednesday’s Class Two sprint.
Nordic Dragon’s rating has risen by 32 points from 52 to 84 since his triumphant debut at Happy Valley in November. The four-year-old galloper’s three unplaced efforts occurred in an 11-week period when he began from gates nine, 12 and 12 in Class Three events.
On Wednesday, Nordic Dragon will start from the outside barrier for the third time in his brief career, with Shum booking lightweight jockey Matthew Poon Ming-fai because neither of the trainer’s first two choices could ride the youngster from gate nine in the nine-runner field, which also features fellow last-start winners Eason and Power Koepp, rising star Howdeepisyourlove and Shum stablemate Majestic Star.
“Nordic Dragon is up into Class Two company with 116 pounds. Hugh Bowman has ridden him in his past three starts. Hugh is out through suspension, and 116 pounds is below his minimum riding weight anyway. I approached Zac Purton, but he can’t get down to 116 pounds, so I booked Matthew Poon,” Shum explained.
No rider has accepted more assignments for Shum this term than Poon, with the 29-year-old jockey and the 62-year-old handler teaming up 102 times for eight wins, 13 runner-up results and six third places.
Having mined a rich seam of talent at the past two sales – he recommended the HK$4.8m lot who became better known as HK$84m earner Romantic Warrior to the champion’s owner, Peter Lau Pak-fai – Shum is on the lookout for more quality horseflesh this year, with the trainer more focused on looks than pedigrees.
“I look at both the catalogue and the horse, but the horse is more important,” said Shum, seventh in this season’s trainers’ championship on 46 victories.
“I’ve read the catalogue, but the ISG horses are in quarantine. They leave quarantine on Tuesday. I’ll go to the track on Wednesday, and I’ll go to the stables to check out those horses on Thursday.”
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Nordic Dragon is one of seven sale graduates who will race at Happy Valley on Wednesday, with another last-start winner, Jamie Richards-prepared HK$4.8m purchase Romantic Laos, chasing a seven-figure ISG bonus in the Class Three Violet Handicap (1,650m) under Purton.
Shum will saddle five runners across Wednesday’s nine races at Happy Valley, with Copartner Ambition, Flying Silver and G One Excellent accompanying Majestic Star and Nordic Dragon for a night out at the city circuit.
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