Trainers were left scrambling to find races for their horses after the cancellation of Wednesday’s Happy Valley meeting because of Tropical Storm Nalgae and no one was hit harder than John Size.
Size had nine gallopers declared to run at the midweek meeting and he was looking forward to seeing would-be debutants Howdeepisyourlove, Act Of Faith and Juneau Flash step out for the first time.
“There’s certainly a bit of reshuffling going on,” Size said about the aftermath of the cancellation. “I had three first starters and it would’ve been nice to give them a run, but that’s the deal.”
Things move quickly in Hong Kong racing, though, and Size gets to unveil two debutants at Sha Tin on Sunday, with A Americ Te Specso and Baby Crystal kicking off their respective careers after two trials apiece.
“He’s had two trials, and he seems like he knows what to do, so he may as well go to the races. There’s no point in trialling him again,” Size said of A Americ Te Specso, who steps out in the Class Four Grace One Handicap (1,200m) under Alexis Badel.
Baby Crystal has the services of Zac Purton for the Class Four Kate Tokyo Handicap (1,000m), with Size hoping the Australian jockey’s expertise ensures gate one is not an issue.
“He’s got an awkward draw. One down the straight isn’t ideal for a first starter – he might be on his own for a minute – but he seems to have some ability, and similarly, he’s probably going to benefit more from a race than a trial, so we’ll try him at the races,” Size said.
Purton also rides Beauty Eternal for Size, with the four-year-old jumping in grade for the Class Three La Estephe Handicap (1,200m) after Jockey Club handicappers penalised him 11 ratings points for his impressive last-start debut victory.
“He’s been fine. He’s nearly a month between races, but I think he probably needed that. He should run well again. He did everything pretty well the first start, so I’m hopeful he’ll repeat,” Size said.
Another last-start winner Accelerando is also among Size’s 11-strong Sha Tin hand – he has representatives in every race – while the veteran handler saddles up Excellent Proposal in Sunday’s feature, the Group Three Sa Sa Ladies’ Purse (1,800m).
A closing fifth last time out when first up over a mile, Excellent Proposal is chasing his first victory since his win under Blake Shinn as a $23 chance in last year’s Classic Mile.
“He ran quite a nice race last start. It was a handicap admittedly, but he did run well, and he’s won at 1,800m at Sha Tin, so he might be able to do that again,” Size said.
“He seems to be healthy and well. He’s in good shape. He probably hasn’t had enough racing, but we’ll see what he can do.”
Jockey Club cancels Happy Valley races as Severe Tropical Storm Nalgae nears HK
Size launches a two-pronged attack on the final event on the card, saddling up Beauty Fit and Sight Spirit in a Class Two Neogence Handicap (1,600m) that is for horses rated between 70 and 90.
“Sight Spirit’s been quite a good horse, actually. He’s raced like he could win in Class Two previously, so with this lower band, he probably comes right into the race. It looks suitable,” Size said.
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