https://www.scmp.com/rss/315982/feed The 2014 Longines Hong Kong Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older, held on December 14th 2014.  It is run over a distance of 2,000 metres. It is one of the four Hong Kong International Races, and in 2014 offers a purse of HK$25 million. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Australian trainer David Hayes produced a triumph of nuance with a tantalisingly good third for Criterion, but the day also left him smiling as it put into context his newest acquisition. A former dual champion trainer in Hong Kong during a 10-year tenure at Sha Tin, Hayes saddled up Criterion for the first time and the four-year-old was a brave length behind Designs On Rome and Military Attack. "I think if he'd drawn a bit better and could have got some cover, you never know. He looked like... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1662873/happy-hayes-full-praise-criterion-and-latest-acquisition-dibayani?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1662873/happy-hayes-full-praise-criterion-and-latest-acquisition-dibayani?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Dec 2014 15:45:15 +0000 There was a distinct lack of scandal, controversy and heartbreak, but it had everything else as the world came to the Longines Hong Kong International Races and was sent home with plenty to think about as local stars became global heroes. More than 74,000 Hong Kong fans crammed a Sha Tin where the blue sky overhead was matched only by the blue sky bursting from local performances that claimed three of the four Group Ones, eight of the 12 placings and announced a new world champion miler in Able... https://www.scmp.com/sport/article/1662701/sun-shines-hk-world-beaters?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/article/1662701/sun-shines-hk-world-beaters?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Dec 2014 15:15:30 +0000 Designs On Rome joined an elite club on Sunday, adding the Longines Hong Kong Cup to his impressive resume to complete the Derby-Queen Elizabeth II-Hong Kong Cup treble. He is only the second horse to do the treble, after Vengeance Of Rain in 2005, and now has the distinction of having won the richest race ever won in Hong Kong. John Moore’s Designs On Rome (Joao Moreira) came from well back to edge out his former stablemate Military Attack (Zac Purton), with Australian raider Criterion fighting... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661872/designs-rome-delivers-big-occasion-hong-kong-cup?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661872/designs-rome-delivers-big-occasion-hong-kong-cup?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Dec 2014 10:05:01 +0000 Caspar Fownes may be lying to Lucky Nine and Military Attack about their ages, but in every other respect the reigning champion trainer's biggest guns for the Longines Hong Kong International Races are right where he wants them. "Lucky Nine's about to turn eight and Military Attack isn't getting any younger, but this is what they've been aimed at and they'll be right there," said Fownes, who has a Hong Kong Sprint to his credit with Lucky Nine in 2011. "His first run this season was outstanding.... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661543/caspar-fownes-lucky-nine-and-military-attack-primed-big-show?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661543/caspar-fownes-lucky-nine-and-military-attack-primed-big-show?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2014 15:26:09 +0000 On a summer day at Saint-Cloud Racecourse in 2009, two scrawny, raw-boned three-year-olds were separated by less than a metre for second place in a race called the Prix Matchem, where they both attracted the attention of Hong Kong owners. Tomorrow, five and a half years later and half a world away at Sha Tin, the career arcs of two of modern racing's fan favourites come full circle when California Memory and Cirrus Des Aigles square off for what is likely to be the last time in the HK$25 million... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661522/warriors-prepare-final-battle-hong-kong-cup?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661522/warriors-prepare-final-battle-hong-kong-cup?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2014 14:55:53 +0000 The global racing circuit has become the equine equivalent of a travelling show, and Hong Kong Cup contender Farraaj is the latest act to travel from town to town entertaining the masses. But for a horse that raced his way out of English handicaps this year, it is the logical next phase of a career confined mostly to his home country. "I think it's fair to say the horse is still on an upward spiral," trainer Roger Varian said yesterday. "He's had a great season back home, he put up a couple of... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661249/farraaj-roadshow-reaches-sha-tin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1661249/farraaj-roadshow-reaches-sha-tin?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Dec 2014 14:30:15 +0000 Longines Hong Kong Cup contender Meiner Lacrima is out of Sunday's race after suffering a serious injury at trackwork on Tuesday morning. The Japanese galloper had to be floated off the all-weather track after the rider dismounted, and while first thoughts suggested the injury was not life-threatening, it will keep him out of the HK$25 million race. https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1658305/japanese-cup-contender-doubt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1658305/japanese-cup-contender-doubt?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Dec 2014 06:03:46 +0000 More than most of the visitors this week, trainer David Hayes knows what international day means to Hong Kong racing after seeing it first-hand emerge from its chrysalis into the butterfly it has become. During his 10 seasons at Sha Tin from 1995, Hayes witnessed racing's greatest show on turf add the Sprint, shake off all the early protections and become an open championship for the world. "I saw a lot of important changes and probably the biggest was how competitive Hong Kong's horses became... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1658068/david-hayes-hopes-criterion-can-make-his-day-hong-kong-cup?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1658068/david-hayes-hopes-criterion-can-make-his-day-hong-kong-cup?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Dec 2014 14:15:15 +0000 Andrea Atzeni got reacquainted with Hong Kong Cup hope Farraaj in a steady turf gallop this morning as his travelling mate and the most renowned frequent flier in world racing Red Cadeaux relaxed into the familiar surrounds of Sha Tin with a lap of the all-weather track. Atzeni has just started a three-month stint in Hong Kong but rode Farraaj at his last start, an unlucky third in the Mackinnon Stakes at Flemington, and will keep the ride in Sunday week’s HK$25 million feature. The Italian... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1653919/latest-hkir-arrivals-settle-cup-hope-hits-turf?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1653919/latest-hkir-arrivals-settle-cup-hope-hits-turf?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Dec 2014 08:00:30 +0000 Approaching nine years of age but with another stellar season behind him, Cirrus Des Aigles makes a sixth trip to Sha Tin chasing a career-capping win in the HK$25 million Longines Hong Kong Cup, where the popular veteran will face a strong local contingent looking to uphold its recent run of success. Although once the domain of highly rated visitors, the richest race on international day has been won by locals for the past three years and what seems a weaker than usual list of foreign entries... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1649432/old-cirrus-hopes-sixth-time-lucky?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1649432/old-cirrus-hopes-sixth-time-lucky?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Nov 2014 13:30:15 +0000 In the richest of the four features, the HK$25 million Longines Hong Kong Cup, rising nine-year-old Cirrus des Aigles returns for his sixth trip to Sha Tin after another stellar season. Corine Barande-Barbe’s popular horse takes on the last two local Horse of the Year winners Designs On Rome and Military Attack, and the emerging star that upstaged them last start, Blazing Speed. California Memory will be attempting to win the race for a third time and faces a field that includes two more... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1649289/hong-kong-cup-field-cirrus-aims-make-it-sixth-time-lucky?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1649289/hong-kong-cup-field-cirrus-aims-make-it-sixth-time-lucky?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Nov 2014 07:52:26 +0000 Trainer Tony Cruz may have in Blazing Speed the horse to end a 21-year wait for a Triple Crown winner but that can wait while he has an appointment with Hong Kong's richest race on December 14. You know last season, I was a bit upset he didn't win the Triple Crown Tony Cruz on Blazing Speed Blazing Speed (Neil Callan) won Group Ones at 1,600m and 2,400m last season and added the Group Two Jockey Club Cup yesterday to throw down his cards as a leading player in the HK$25 million Longines Hong... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1647282/versatile-speed-blazes-trail-hong-kongs-richest-race?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/1647282/versatile-speed-blazes-trail-hong-kongs-richest-race?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Nov 2014 15:45:30 +0000