The Jockey Club took their corporate motto of 'Racing For Charity' to a new extreme, and employees were forced to open up the Sha Tin vault to pay out punters after griffin winner Bear Hero was backed to below the minimum dividend in the four-horse opener.
David Ferraris and Weichong Marwing combined for another easy kill with their talented two-year-old, and both were in awe of the colt's display of dominance over his rivals.
There was no points decision required as Bear Hero toyed with his three rivals like a pro-boxer knocking down inexperienced sparring partners, and the big punters took advantage to earn 5 per cent on their money in the space of 56.50 seconds.
'Bear Hero is a very nice horse, a shining light for our stable and I really believe he is a special individual,' Ferraris said. 'He has all the attributes of a special horse, and it was just a matter of keeping him ticking over leading up to this race and making sure the Club didn't cancel it on us.'
Bear Hero claimed his first griffin win by 4 3/4 lengths, and his second yesterday by 2 3/4 lengths, but now the son of General Nediym must cut his teeth against the open-class horses and finds himself at the mercy of the handicappers. 'He can't run in griffin races anymore now he's won two, so we'll have to see what the handicappers give him before we decide his immediate future,' Ferraris said. 'Eventually I think he'll go further. I think 1,400 metres will be ideal but I'm sure he'll get a mile later on.
'Bear Hero is just such a nice horse and settles so well. Even today, he was able to take a sit off them and he let down very well.