Hong Kong will open its betting pools again on the second day of Sydney’s Championships at Randwick, with Dominant running in the Sydney Cup, top jockeys Zac Purton and Joao Moreira players once more and coming off a tremendous business result on the first day.
The Jockey Club handle on six races Doncaster day was more than $25 million Australian dollars – bettered only by the Dubai World Cup simulcast last month – and much higher than last year’s Doncaster day holdings.
Officials are hoping that having Zac Purton take the reins on To The World and having Dominant in the Cup will help, although trainer John Moore has been lacking confidence in Dominant’s chance of winning. He has declared the stayer perfect in condition but poorly placed giving weight to favourite Hartnell and the trainer says he is looking at Dominant as a place chance.
At home on Sunday, it’s a low-key mixed surface meeting, lacking Moreira, who starts a suspension, and the local highlight this week has been the announcement of invited runners for the QE II Cup later this month. The foreign invitees are Staphanos from Japan, David Hayes-trained Criterion, Smoking Sun who was second to Dan Excel in Singapore last year and globetrotter Red Cadeaux. Only nine locals were named, headed by the last two QE II winners, Designs On Rome and Military Attack, so the race will not have a full field of fourteen.
The first ‘griffin’ race of the season – Hong Kong’s equivalent of two-year-olds – will be run on Sunday down the straight. Trainer Ricky Yiu has a strong hand, with General Patch and Happy Chappy having both impressed at the trials. Southern hemisphere two-year-olds have a good record in these races, so Happy Chappy could be the best chance yet for Australian jockey Damian Lane to ride his first winner.
By Nathan Mody
