Our Correspondent feels bullish about the Hong Races on Saturday at Sha Tin and is emboldened to suggest six races where one can consider having a bet. The races though competitive appear to be a handicapper's delight.


Photos by LeeMingDonald @LeeMingDonald

Second Race - # 1) Valiant Dream has been penalized 8 rating points for his last 1.5 length win. Jockey Jack Wong who had been stood down from riding due to an injury he sustained to his right ankle in the barriers at the Sha Tin race meeting on 5 May 2019 has been cleared to resume riding and will be astride this Francis Lui trained 3-year old gelding. Valiant Dream is better at the weights than Marvelous World who he beat convincingly by 3 lengths when they last ran. These two horses shape better than the rest of the field and can also be combined in a Quinella.

Third Race - # 12) Though Royal Chocolate is a 17 start Hong Kong maiden, he has finished second three times this season. While his form is better at Happy Valley as compared to Sha Tin, Royal Chocolate still appeals as a bet. Royal Chocolate has consistently earned high speed ratings and is extremely well prepared as evidenced by his last two gallops of 51 seconds and 51.3 seconds.

Sixth Race - # 1) Duke Wai had gained more than four lengths in his last start when he finished second and will relish the step up from 1200 meters to 1400 meters. He will duke this race out with Victory Power who had bombed his chances because of jumping out awkwardly. Gracious Ryder and Ka Ying Brilliance are the others who can fill the frame.

Eighth Race - # 3) Green Card is in rare form and will be run a good race on Saturday. Looking Good and Circuit Hassler are the two that he has to contend with. His trainer, John Moore has entered two horses in this race and John has assigned Green Card a lower preference than his other runner Good Beauty. The way it works is that if a trainer enters more than one horse in the same race, he has to state his preference, the first preference horse will have priority over the second preference horse in the same race when deciding which horses are in the field and which are reserve runners.

Ninth Race - # 4) Cordyceps will try and set his own pace with jockey Joao Moreira in the saddle and has a good chance to win this race start to finish from King’s Shield. Uncle Steve (who had a torrid trip in his last run) and Ever Laugh are the other contenders with a fair change in this race.

Tenth Race – Quinella with # 2) Champion’s Way and #13) Perfect Match. Champion’s Way is unbeaten in his Hong Kong career. Perfect Match was most impressive in his last start win. He is the only runner on Saturday with a 10-point rating jump. In our article, How heavily penalized horses perform in Hong Kong?, we noted that nearly 40% of ‘big jumpers in rating’ with a 10 point jump in rating win and return a positive Return on Investment (ROI) and because of this we respect Perfect Match. Champion’s Way and Perfect Match will contend the race closely and as such we recommend combining Perfect Match and Champion’s Way in a Quinella. This pair should be able to finish in the top two and keep Rivet and Right Choice at bay.

Here are the selections for the card