European colt receives 2019 Kentucky Derby invitation

Bye Bye Hong Kong didn’t enter Thursday’s European trail finale for the 2019 Kentucky Derby nominated for the Triple Crown series. So with victory, his connections now have a $200,000 question to answer.

Would they like to supplement and make the trip stateside?

Under jockey Silvestre de Sousa, the Andrew Balding-trained Bye Bye Hong Kong prevailed from a group of three who hit the wire together in Chelmsford City’s Cardinal Conditions Stakes, which awarded European qualifying points on a 30-12-6-3 scale to the Top 4.

Churchill Downs has extended an invitation to owner King Power Racing with those 30 points enough to position Bye Bye Hong Kong, a son of Street Sense bred by WinStar Farm, atop the European trail’s leaderboard.

Therefore, American horses running in this weekend’s final round of domestic preps may need to shoot for 18th on the board currently occupied by Signalman, who has 38 points. Arkansas Derby contender Long Range Toddy (11th, 53.5 points) is the only runner entered this weekend already locked into the Kentucky Derby.

Going into the Cardinal Conditions, the Aidan O’Brien-trained U S S Michigan was favored and carried Derby ambitions. But he got stuck in behind horses early in the mile race and fell short, finishing fourth.

As for Bye Bye Hong Kong and King Power, the group lost its original owner, 60-year-old Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, last October in a helicopter crash. Srivaddhanaprabha was also known as owner of England’s Leicester City Football Club. His son, Aiyawatt, is now head of the racing partnership.

Antilles finished a neck back of Bye Bye Hong Kong in the Cardinal Conditions and would be the next — as well as only other — horse in line for an invitation from Churchill Downs.