Lui eyes Group 1 Stewards’ Cup with Patch Of Theta
Francis Lui will consider a tilt at the Stewards’ Cup (Gr 1, 1600m) with Patch Of Theta (Zoustar) after the talented gelding’s emphatic Chinese Club Challenge Cup Handicap (Gr 3, 1400m) triumph at Sha Tin on Wednesday.
Purchased for HK$8.6 million at the 2023 Hong Kong International Sale, Patch Of Theta made it six wins from 14 starts after settling sixth before Karis Teetan issued a late challenge to easily defeat Drombeg Banner (Starspangledbanner) and Green N White (Smart Missile) in 1m 20.91s.
The impressive nature of the win prompted Lui to consider entering Patch Of Theta for the Stewards’ Cup on January 19 – a race he won twice with Golden Sixty (Medaglia D’Oro).
“He showed he’s a really honest horse and he keeps improving every time. After the race, he [Teetan] told me the horse was very good and he’s got a third gear, not a second gear,” Lui said. “Of course, we’ll think about trophy races. Now he can run between 1400 metres and 1600 metres, next time we will think about the Stewards’ Cup.”
Teetan said: “I still think this horse, once he knows how to race properly, he’s going to be even better. But with that weight on his back [115lb], he went through them and when I got into the straight, he changed gears pretty quickly.”
Howdeepisyourlove (Deep Field) provided John Size with his fifth Bauhinia Sprint Trophy Handicap (Gr 3, 1000m) win when the 2022/23 Hong Kong Champion Griffin edged out favourite Magic Control (Sioux Nation) by a short head in 56.16s. Beauty Waves (Starspangkedbanner) was third.
Jumping from barrier one, Howdeepisyourlove tracked Magic Control throughout before Zac Purton angled along the outside fence to narrowly clinch his third win in the race.
Previously successful in the race with Grand Delight (Hurricane Sky) (2003), Amazing Kids (Falkirk) (2017), Premiere (Dylan Thomas) (2018) and Sight Success (Magnus) (2023), Size was impressed with Howdeepisyourlove’s application in running down one of Hong Kong’s fastest sprinters.
“He did the job well, it was a pretty impressive effort, actually, to get the leader [Magic Control] down, he’s a hard horse to get past and he did the job very well. I couldn’t expect any more from him,” Size said.
With six wins and ten minor placings from 25 starts, Howdeepisyourlove has forged a reputation for consistency, often performing well at elite level without winning.
“He’s made small improvements along the way, his pattern changed a little bit and his tracks have changed – he’s come to Sha Tin and run well – and as he’s gone up in class, he hasn’t looked anything flash but he’s always been there to do the job. Today, he got one of the rewards he’s entitled to,” Size said.
The Al Quoz Sprint (Gr 1, 1200m) in Dubai on March 30 is a possible target for Howdeepisyourlove.
“I’ll see how he is after the race at home and see what our options are and how he pulls up but that’s [the Bauhinia Sprint Trophy] a straight race so that opens up a possibility for him,” Size said.
Purton, who slotted a treble to move to 1,803 Hong Kong wins, ten shy of Douglas Whyte’s record of 1,813, said: “The outside fence looked the place to be in the small field and the gate [barrier one] allowed me to get out there because the speed in the race was great, it just opened everything up.
“We just followed the favourite and sneaked through. He is a consistent horse, he’s just a step below our top ones so he needs to take his opportunity when he can get it and today was that.”
Purton also scored on Frankie Lor’s Legend St Paul’s(Tivaci) in the Class 4 Tsung Pak Long Handicap (1600m) and the Jamie Richards-trained Storming Dragon (Star Turn) in the second section of the Class 3 Cha Kwo Ling Handicap (1200m).
Vincent Ho marked his return from injury with a double on the Chris So-trained pair The Boom Box (Spirit Of Boom), in the second section of the Class 4 Lai Chi Chong Handicap (1200m), and Devas Twelve (Headwater)in the first section of the Class 4 Lei Muk Shue Handicap (1400m).
“It’s been really tough the past few weeks, but I’m grateful to be riding him today,” Ho said before praising The Boom Box, who is unbeaten after two starts. “We wanted him to relax early to teach him the right way for the future when we might step him up and he’s got a great turn of foot and showed bravery between horses, so he’s on the right path.”
Britney Wong and Benno Yung combined with Fun Elite (Brazen Beau) to win the first race of the New Year – the first section of the Class 4 Lai Chi Chong Handicap (1200m) – as Wong posted her seventh victory of the season, while Yung slotted his fifth win from the past six meetings.
The Ricky Yiu-trained Chilli Baba (Capitalist) won his first race in exactly two years with success in the Class 5 Yau Kom Tau Handicap (1800m) before Yiu completed a double with Solid Win (Starspangledbanner) under Hugh Bowman in the second section of the Class 4 Lei Muk Shue Handicap (1400m).
Caspar Fownes teamed with Ellis Wong to win the first section of the Class 3 Cha Kwo Ling Handicap (1200m) with Dancing Code (Panzer Division) before Harry Bentley’s clinical ride enabled Huge Wave (Vadamos) to snare the Class 3 Chuk Yuen Handicap (1600m) for Jimmy Ting.