Champion jockey Douglas Whyte kept his word with Geoff Lane and knocked back other rides to steer home Paradis for him at double-figure odds yesterday. Whyte had ridden the gelding at Happy Valley on March 19 when he finished eight of 12, jumped off and assured Lane he would take the ride next start.
'Douglas told us not to be disappointed with the horse's run at Happy Valley, that it was a lot better run than it looked,' Lane said after the four-year-old had surged up to grab Exciting Times close to home.
'Paradis was caught wide all the way there from a bad gate and Douglas was of the opinion that the inside of the track that night was definitely the best ground but he was unable to get there. I know Douglas had plenty of others he could have ridden in this race but he stuck to his word,' he added.
Whyte's judgment was assisted by a plethora of gear changes with a tongue tie going on Paradis along with a shadow roll, and Lane removed the blinkers he had applied for just two runs.
'The blinkers were something we tried I suppose because the horse hadn't been winning but I was never a 100 per cent on them - really, Paradis is a pretty genuine horse,' Lane said. 'He'll never be any champion, we know that, but he can race well here and Happy Valley, wet or dry and he'll pay his way.'
Trainer Manfred Man Ka-leung was as surprised as everyone else when useful four-year-old Real Winner (Simon Yim Hin-keung) decided yesterday's fourth race was the moment to return to form at cricket score odds.