Trainer Ricky Yiu Poon-fai had rookie sensation Karis Teetan pegged as a Happy Valley specialist from the moment he saw him in a race and the Mauritian continued his spectacular start to the season with a double on Wednesday night.
Teetan scored on Yiu’s impressive young stayer Ambassadorship to bring up a double – with six of the newcomer’s eight wins this term notched at the Valley.
“I picked it as soon as I saw him – he is very sharp and aggressive and he is quick to take up a position at the start,” Yiu said. “I spoke to him a bit before the season and he has spent time riding on smaller tracks in Mauritius and when he rode in South Africa, and it shows.”
With an earlier victory on Me Tsui Yu-sak’s Golden Bauhinia, Teetan’s eight wins from as many meetings are good enough for third on the jockeys’ championship table behind big guns Douglas Whyte and Zac Purton.
It was Purton on Ride On The Fire that Teetan ran down aboard Golden Bauhinia in a fighting finish, but it was his effort in finding the box seat from gate eight that earned rave reviews from winning trainer Me Tsui Yu-sak.
“He rode an excellent race – I couldn’t believe he got to the rail,” Tsui said. Tsui later scored with Hearts Keeper (Ben So Tik-hung), a horse he said needs to find rhythm in a race because of breathing issues.
“He is roarer so he needs space,” Tsui said. “Benny did a fantastic job of getting him where he did to be one off with some galloping room.”
Tye Angland continued his solid early season form with a double, a late charge stealing a share of the Jockey Challenge from Teetan – his first winner Sichuan Charm given a glowing report from handler John Size after scoring at his second local start.
“We knew he had the pace to get across from gate 11, that was never going to be an issue. He showed the speed last start here,” Size said.
“I think this horse has got a future here, not many PPs find their feet early in Hong Kong and it’s a good sign when they win early like this. I think he can do good things.”
Angland closed the night with a win on the Andreas Schutz-trained Little Dreams – reversing a heart-breaking nose defeat suffered at the ends of last night’s second-placegetter Chater Dream.
“That was a fantastic ride from Tye,” Schutz said.
“I’m so happy for these owners – I was so sad when he was beaten last start, we thought that was his race, and he has had so many problems so you don’t know you will get another chance.”
Pleasure Gains had already announced himself as one to watch with a blistering last start victory at the Valley – and another come-from-behind effort, against the apparent leader bias, was further confirmation of his quality.
“He is very unassuming,” winning jockey Purton said of the four-year-old, who took his record to four from seven. “In the mornings he is so relaxed, a class five horse could beat him. He is relaxed in a race too, which is good – he is a real gentleman to ride.” Freshman trainer Chris So Yai-win got his third winner for the term and Jackie Tong Chi-kit got his first when Perfect Moment overcame a wide draw to score at 17-1.
“I thought his first up run was good and he was fit. We decided to bring him back to the distance he had won at before,” So said.
