Tony Cruz is one winner away from equalling George Moore's record of 87 wins in a single season following a double at Sha Tin on Sunday and, on reflection, his strike-rate this season of 20 per cent has been nothing short of remarkable.
Cruz has dominated most of the feature races this term and earned prize money for his owners in excess of $111 million. It has been an astonishing season for Cruz and he may set a mark that in the foreseeable future is unattainable.
And Cruz must have been as proud as all of Hong Kong was with the performances of Silent Witness (third) and Bullish Luck (fourth) in the Yasuda Kinen over 1,600 metres. The champion sprinter was only caught in the last few bounds and every horse that raced on the pace with him was beaten into submission soon after straightening. He proved that he can win a Group One contest over the mile.
The track bias helped the cause of Cruz's Lucky Danske, who scored a comfortable victory over 1,400m (Race 655), but runner-up Summerville Power ran well in defeat.
He is looking for a step up in trip, and should prove hard to beat over 1,800m or further.
Meanwhile, there may be another star on the horizon, based on the manner in which Wealthy notched his fifth successive win - his seventh victory from 10 starts.