Fownes Extends Championship Lead In Night Out At Happy Valley
Caspar Fownes tightened his grip on the trainers’ championship and Douglas Whyte ended his barren spell on a rain-affected night of action at Happy Valley on Wednesday.
Luke Ferraris and Zac Purton shared riding honours with three wins each.
Fownes and Ferraris combined as Toronado gelding Verbier (121lb) made the most of a well-timed ride by the South African, and drove through a gap between the leading pair to claim the Class 5 Intercontinental Limousine Handicap (1200m) by half a length.
Super Sicario (129lb) netted his first win since the opening Happy Valley meeting of the season under Hugh Bowman in the Class 5 Kwoon Chung Motors Handicap (1800m) for trainers’ championship leader Fownes, who moved to 39 wins for the season.
“We gave him a nice break away and prepared him well for this,” Fownes said of Super Sicario.
“Hugh handled him well, and he’s won nicely. He started off a bit intractable, but once the race started to progress, he was good. Once he passed the second bend, I was very confident.”
Whyte put a firm end to a frustrating run, which had stretched to 62 days, with an emphatic quickfire double.
First, Brazilian-bred Gameplayer Elite (116lb) finished strongly to claim a first Hong Kong racing win partnered by Harry Bentley in the Class 4 KC Smart Mobility Handicap (1200m), before Purton bagged a brace for the handler when he prevailed aboard Hong Kong International Sale graduate Giant Ballon (125lb) in the Class 4 Kwoon Chung Macau Limousine Rental Services Handicap (1200m).
“He’s been running consistently in his last two starts,” Whyte said of Gameplayer Elite. “It’s been a bit of a frustrating run of things with him. Tonight, the draw and the tempo played into his hands, and he ran a nice race. I think he’s just a healthy horse and his rating, the draw and the ground played a big part.
“It’s taken a long time to turn things around, but the horses have been running very consistently. Two of the horses put their A game together tonight and both won very well,” he added.
Frankie Lor continued a strong spell with his latest winner when Symbol Of Strength (131lb) battled gamely to hit the line ahead of Flying Wrote (121lb) in the Class 3 Kwoon Chung Bus Cup Handicap (1200m). The victory provided Ferraris with his second win of the night and Symbol Of Strength’s owners with a PP Bonus of HK$1.5 million.
Ferraris completed the treble with his 25th victory of the season, leapfrogging Karis Teetan and Vincent Ho into fifth place in the jockeys’ standings, when Fivefortwo (121lb) claimed the Class 3 Sichuan Bipenggou Tourist Attractions Handicap (1650m) for trainer Francis Lui. The four-year-old Irish import also sealed a HK$1.5 million PP Bonus for his owners.
Standby starter Ace War (122lb) secured a maiden Hong Kong win on his first run for Mark Newnham’s yard in the Class 4 Trans-Island Chinalink Handicap (2200m). Champion jockey Purton was in the saddle as the Irish-bred import made the most of his late call-up to run on comfortably.
“When they extended the entries, we added him and he looked like he’d be lucky enough to get in, and he got conditions to suit,” said Newnham, who moved level with David Hayes on 36 wins in second on the trainers’ ladder.
“He had run over 2000 metres in the UK on soft ground, so any rain we got today was going to be helpful.”
Purton sealed his hat-trick courtesy of a beautifully timed effort, producing the Tony Cruz-trained California Moxie (133lb) for an electrifying finish in the Class 4 Kwoon Chung Inclusive & Accessible Service Handicap (1650m).
“On his last start he just walked out of the gate, so I told Zac just to get that start and wait – Zac timed it to perfection,” Cruz said.
“Today was very different ground but I was sure he could handle it; I think on faster ground he would have been even better.”
Amazing Kid (120lb) continued his winning form after a difficult introduction to Class 3 in February, as he swept forward late on to seal the Class 3 New Lantao Bus Handicap (1200m) for trainer John Size and Andrea Atzeni. It was the Exceed And Excel gelding’s fourth win in five outings.
Hong Kong racing continues at Sha Tin on Sunday (March 8).
