Moore, Whyte, Williams, and Moreira share spotlight at Happy Valley

A healthy dose of nostalgia descended upon Happy Valley tonight (Wednesday, 14 December) as old firms reunited and old faces reappeared, led by trainer John Moore and jockeys Douglas Whyte and Craig Williams, but Joao Moreira had emerged once more by the end of the night to again steal the spotlight on a competitive night’s racing at the city circuit.

 

Moore and Whyte combined to land a double, taking the Class 4 Shek Kip Mei Handicap (1200m) with lightly-raced Isaac before snaring the night’s feature, the Class 3 Hong Kong Chinese Amateur Athletic Federation Centenary Gold Cup Handicap (1200m), on Valley revelation Sea Jade, and the handler was full of praise for Hong Kong’s 13-time champion rider.

 

“Congratulations to Dougie,” Moore said. “Two great wins, two copybook rides and it’s great to see him back in the winners’ circle – it was a bit of the old school today! We go back a long way, Dougie and I. He did a bit of riding for me when he first arrived and it’s great to have him back on top again.”

 

Sea Jade had won one of his six runs at Sha Tin in his short career, which began in June, but the three-year-old has been a different horse since switching to the smaller track. He won by four and a half lengths under Zac Purton on 30 November before repeating with a two and three-quarter length victory under Whyte tonight, both times leading throughout, and Moore says it is a case of “horses for courses” with the son of Star Witness.

 

“He just loves this track,” Moore said. “He’s got the speed, the short straight, he kicked on turning in and was very impressive so horses for courses I think you can say. I told Dougie he could sit in behind if they tried to challenge for the lead, but there wasn’t the expected pressure so he allowed the horse to stride and he clearly enjoys it.

 

“For the time being, I will keep him at Happy Valley. Obviously, you run out of races here when you get to Class 2 but for now, we’ll stick with what we knows will work. And it allows him to build confidence for when he returns to Sha Tin.”

 

Isaac had his maiden outing on 26 October in the void race behind D B Pin, before making his official debut on 16 November when fifth to that same horse. Suspended jockey Sam Clipperton rode him that day, and Moore credited the young rider with unlocking the key to victory.

 

“Sam rode him first-up and was very good with feedback,” Moore said. “He said just put him over a bit more ground from a good gate, he’ll be competitive here, and that I did. He clearly relished a bit further tonight.

 

“I’m disappointed for Sam but it was great that Dougie could get aboard both horses and give them peaches.”

 

As for Williams, the visiting Australian jockey broke an 11-year Happy Valley drought in emphatic fashion when he scored a double with wins aboard Tony Millard-trained Cloud Nine in the Class 4 Cheung Sha Wan Handicap (2200m) and Chris So’s Travel Ambassador in the Class 4 Tai Hang Tung Handicap (1650m).

 

Williams has been a frequent visitor to Sha Tin but last won at Happy Valley in 2005, scoring a double on 22 June that year. He had only ridden at two meetings at the city track since then; one a week later, the other as part of the LONGINES International Jockeys’ Championship in 2012.

 

“I love riding in Hong Kong, it’s always great to be here,” Williams said after recording two wins, a second and a third from his five rides. “The skills I learnt here along with my experiences in Europe helped me to five championships back in Australia, so it is always special to come back. I don’t get the chance to ride at Happy Valley too often and I know it’s been a while since I won here but I loved being back tonight.”

 

The Melbourne-based rider notched his first win on Cloud Nine, the dour son of Tapit breaking his Hong Kong maiden at his 13th attempt despite pre-race plans not coming to fruition.

 

“I actually wanted to lead and make all the running,” Williams said. “He’s a big-striding horse and on the C course I thought that was the best plan, but he didn’t quite have the pace to get up there. He didn’t have much of a sprint but he fought on well and the way the race developed really suited him.”

 

Travel Ambassador was another to benefit from the Williams touch, the rider making an early move as trouble developed inside him before holding off luckless favourite Wisky to win by a length and three-quarters. For the five-year-old’s trainer, the first win at start 15 couldn’t have come soon enough.

 

“He had been pretty disappointing, I have to say,” So said. “He should have won before now. I thought he’d go well last time at Sha Tin over 1800m but he was flat, so I trialled him – and he was very impressive in the trial – and then I brought him back here. I always knew he had that in him, but it just took a bit longer than expected.”

 

So was effusive in his praise for Williams, who will ride in Hong Kong for the next three meetings.

 

“I love putting Craig on,” he said. “He’s a big name jockey, he does his homework, the owners love him and he always gives his all. When he was free, I was very happy to put him on Travel Ambassador.”

 

 

The difference between Sunday’s HK$25 million G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup and tonight’s Sham Shui Po Handicap (1800m) could not have been more stark, but for trainer Dennis Yip, both races carried plenty of importance as the handler brought up win number 600 in Hong Kong at Happy Valley tonight.

 

Yip prepared Secret Weapon to run second to Japanese champion Maurice in Hong Kong’s richest race last weekend, the trainer’s best result ever in an international Group 1, while he brought up the 600 milestone with Garlic Yeah in tonight’s Class 5. And the handler was delighted to have reached the figure, pointing to jockey Joao Moreira as the crucial factor.

 

“I’m very happy to have made it to 600, but it would have been nice if it had come up with Secret Weapon!” he laughed. “It was all on the jockey there, Joao made all the difference. He saved the ground and if he’d come out wide he wouldn’t have won. He’s still green and learning, he doesn’t know what he’s doing, but I think he’s got improvement in him.”

 

Yip said he was very happy with Secret Weapon’s effort in the Hong Kong Cup and believes that the run may have opened up international pathways later in the season.

 

“He beat them all other than a champion,” Yip said. “I’m so proud of him. We’ll aim him at the (G1 Citi Hong Kong) Gold Cup now and then I think we might go to Dubai. We’ll decide after the Gold Cup.”

 

Moreira later added wins in the final two races on Caspar Fownes’ Marvel Hero and Tony Cruz-trained Happy Spirit to bring up his second treble in the space of four days.