Injury-plagued Double Luck turns back clock
Double Luck seems older than his seven years and probably feels it too after all the problems he has had, but at least the Manfred Man Ka-leung-trained gelding didn't require his nose as the deciding factor in the Hong Kong Squash 50th Anniversary Cup (1,200m).
Double Luck (Keith yeung Ming-lun) had a comfortable length to spare in breaking a 32-month drought and landing a strong betting move in a Class Three contest full of them.
With favourite Space Race strong in the market before finishing second and Vintage Hussler well in commission as second choice, the race still featured powerful moves for a number of runners, including the $130 in to $66 punt on Double Luck and a huge, failed plunge on King Of The Day at longer odds.
Big moves were a theme of the day, with betting turnover the highest at a Happy Valley meeting since December 23, 2001, and the Double Luck backers got their reward as the sprinter turned the clock back.
'This time last year, Double Luck was in Class Two, so he had become very well handicapped,' said Man.
'Of course, at his age, you can't always rely on a horse to give his best all the time. But he had won a barrier trial and I thought he was showing some of his old form. With the fast pace he was well suited and I'm happy for the owner, who has waited two years for Double Luck to win again.'
Life has never been all beer and skittles for Double Luck, who has had foot problems and internal bleeding at times, but his most recent misadventure was more painful.
At his last run last season in July, Double Luck jumped in the air at the start and smashed his head against the steel structure of the gates at Sha Tin.
He finished last and returned bloodied and bruised after the race, looking like he had been around in a world title fight, with vets ascertaining that he had suffered a fractured nose in the incident.
