FWD Champions Day Review – The Bubble Has Burst

Before we get to the nitty gritty of the racing which you all expect, I need to mention something new I ran into at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. We all know that British racing is regularly described as living in the past but you cannot accuse Hong Kong of the same – they are constantly looking to stay ahead of the curve. I was asked to pop down to The Beat, a new area aimed at Generation Z (I had to look that up and I still don’t understand it), so we will call in the younger generation for ease of use. A neon lit bar/restaurant on the track with a speakeasy feel to it, technology took centre stage and it was a real eye-opener. Huge screens showed the racing as you would expect, but between contests they had horse avatars full of information including their race record, draw benefit, jockey ranking and so on. All meant to simplify life for the racegoers, who were sat back enjoying food and drink and a live band between races, but it was the QR codes that really impressed me. Once the horse you fancy (or just like the name of, or colours) comes up on the screen, scan the QR code on your phone and it takes you straight to the Hong Kong Jockey Club site to place your bet – no faffing about on a website trying to find the race and then the horse – instant gratification, and if it attracts the next generation (and the place was buzzing), British racing should sit up and take note.

On to race day and it was busy as expected despite the worry of a bit of rain. Cheap entry fees, a glossy racecard for less than £1.50, affordable food and drink (curry and rice or a beer for £5), and clean modern facilities seem attractive (who would have guessed?), with the added attraction of a celebrity line-up both pre-racing and in the middle of the card (NOT just post racing) to bring newcomers through the doors. My music playlist may not include Minnie (of K Pop band (G) I-DLE) or “pop diva and actress Joey Yung”, but that didn’t stop them proving immensely popular to the extent I could hardly get through the (screaming hysterically) crowd to see them up close (had I wanted to) – but if they get the next generation interested in our sport, then I am all in favour.

Unsurprisingly I am not covering the “other” (handicap) races in any great detail – I do not profess to know Hong Kong form well enough to offer up an opinion – so straight on to the three big races…

The Chairman’s Sprint Prize

Before the race this was all about Ka Ying Rising looking to cement his place as the best sprinter in the World though at 1/8 back home (and 1/20 on course), I wouldn’t blame anyone looking for an alternative to hit the frame with second favourite Satono Reve at 8/1 (SP 14/1) paying more for a place than backing the winner - assuming he hits the top three, of course? Stood there wondering if I would be willing to have £100 on to win a fiver and deciding no, I really shouldn’t have worried, he was simply a class above. Sat in the first six throughout, and never doing more than needed, Zac Purton sent him to the front shortly after they took the bend into the straight and the result was never in any doubt, with two and a quarter lengths the official margin at the line. Word is he will probably go to Australia for the Everest next, with the sad reality that even Royal Ascot prize money just isn’t enough to attract the World’s best. As for the placed horses, they will need to avoid the winner to get their heads in front again, but neither runner-up Satono Reve or third placed Helios Express can be too disappointed, picking up about £450,000 and £245,000 respectively for their connections.   

Result:

1st Ka Ying Rising 1/20

2nd Satone Reve 14/1

3rd Helios Express 37/1

The FWD Champions Mile

Considering we rarely if ever see any betting value at home in the United Kingdom I was pleasantly surprised to note some each way odds in this race with a best price of 11/8 Voyage Bubble and 6/1 bar making Mr Brightside a serious consideration pre-race as a safety net, with my main punt already placed on “the bubble” (please don’t burst). As the race unfolded, we could tell we were going to be in for a spectacular finish and so it proved, even if it wasn’t the result I wanted. Hugh Bowman has always been a jockey I have had the utmost admiration for but that loyalty is now sorely tested after he steered home Red Lion, a 90/1 shot, a short head clear of my selection, who I thought had won from my angle (should have gone to Specsavers). The announcement of a Steward’s enquiry had my financially biased eyes convinced I would get the race until reality kicked in, and I knew my luck was out. Amazingly, it was the six-year-olds first victory outside of handicap company (hence his price) and to my surprise he originally got off the mark in a Dundalk maiden on the all-weather in 2022, so the story there horse owners is simple enough – patience can be a virtue.

Result:

1st Red Lion 90/1

2nd Voyage Bubble 3/5f

3rd Sunlight Power 59/1

The FWD QEII Cup

As per my preview, this was always going to go to the horse best suited by the way the race unfolded. Goliath was assumed to need a strong pace over the shorter trip, Liberty Island needed to negotiate a wide draw, and Prognosis required the perfect ride from James McDonald, finishing second last year after missing the break. What unfolded was (another) disaster as far as I was concerned. A slow early place meant you could write off Goliath after a furlong or two and he may need a return to a mile and a half before we see him win again, Liberty Island sadly went wrong (I don’t have any updates at the time of writing), and Prognosis was perhaps left with too much to do before coming home second for the third season in a row. This year the honours (and the not insignificant sum of over £1.5 million) went to Tastiera, trained by Noriyuki Hori and ridden by Damien Lane, the country’s only winner of the big three races this year, but still some achievement. Scoring by a length and three-quarters after getting first run on his rivals, the Japanese Derby winner of 2023 was winning for the first time since (almost two years later), but was yet another reminder that Japanese racing is improving year on year, and that their runners are a danger to all. Finally, a mention for Calif who came home third at 48/1 representing Bahrain and Fawzi Nass. That was a fantastic run from the Areion gelding and a reminder to us all that the racing landscape around the World is changing – and that at home in the UK we cannot afford to sit still and rely on our history much longer.  

Result:

1st Tastiera 11/4

2nd Prognosis 5/2f

3rd Calif 48/1

Conclusion: Not my finest hour with a (silly priced) winner, a short-head second, and a still running ninth in Goliath, but a stark reminder of how racing can be – or perhaps should be. Big crowds, great facilities, affordable options, exciting competition, and pools where a bet won’t make the slightest ripple in the final prices. How we replicate it, I will leave to the powers that be – but reproduce it we must if we want to continue to compete on the international stage.