https://www.scmp.com/rss/330078/feed As General Manager for Great British Racing International, Minty writes for various racing and bloodstock publications worldwide about horses bred, trained and purchased in Britain. Minty takes a particularly strong interest in racing in Hong Kong and the success of horses imported from Europe. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Siu Pak-kwan has been chasing the Derby dream in Hong Kong for over 20 years. On more than one occasion, the prominent owner and his family have come within touching distance of victory in the coveted contest. Most recently, subsequent Group One winner Waikuku – racing under daughter-in-law Jocelyn’s name – finished runner-up in the 2019 renewal, having had to contend with being drawn in the widest stall. This weekend, Siu will get the chance to shoot for Derby glory once again. This time,... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3222586/prominent-hong-kong-owners-siu-family-take-aim-epsom-derby-waipiro?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3222586/prominent-hong-kong-owners-siu-family-take-aim-epsom-derby-waipiro?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Jun 2023 08:02:48 +0000 At roughly 3.25pm on September 11 2022, a gelding named Kinross crossed the finish line at Doncaster in front to win the Group Two Park Stakes at the same time as the late Queen Elizabeth II’s cortege passed through the Scottish town of Kinross on its way to lie in state. Pure coincidence in the eyes of some; a curious twist of fate according to others. Among those acknowledging the poignancy of the result was the horse’s owner, Hong Kong-based Marc Chan. A great admirer of the late monarch,... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3219615/hong-kong-owner-chan-bids-coronation-weekend-classic-lezoo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3219615/hong-kong-owner-chan-bids-coronation-weekend-classic-lezoo?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 May 2023 04:45:26 +0000 Hong Kong businessman Christopher Tsui Ka-leung will join leading figures from the British racing industry at the National Horseracing Museum in Newmarket on Friday night for a glittering reception to celebrate the induction of his homebred, Sea The Stars, into the QIPCO British Champions Series Hall of Fame. Launched in 2021, the Hall of Fame sets out to immortalise the modern greats of British flat racing – both equine and human – from 1970 onwards. Selected by an independent panel of industry... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3219456/hong-kong-owned-champion-galloper-sea-stars-enters-british-hall-fame?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3219456/hong-kong-owned-champion-galloper-sea-stars-enters-british-hall-fame?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 May 2023 03:53:25 +0000 There are not many racehorse trainers who have hit headlines across the racing world more regularly or widely over the past 12 months than William Haggas. Coming off the back of his most successful year yet in terms of both number of winners and prize money in 2021, the Newmarket handler continued to attract widespread adulation in 2022. On home turf, Baaeed continued his ascent to world’s best turf racehorse status via the United Kingdom’s most prestigious Group One contests, while stablemates... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3218669/dubai-honour-keeps-william-haggas-name-lights-he-seeks-qe-ii-cup-glory?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3218669/dubai-honour-keeps-william-haggas-name-lights-he-seeks-qe-ii-cup-glory?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 28 Apr 2023 02:52:34 +0000 Just over a year ago, Hugo Palmer’s career took a new direction. After 11 years in Newmarket, the Classic-winning trainer made the decision to up sticks and move 280 kilometres northwest, to the English county of Cheshire, and take the reins as trainer at former football star Michael Owen’s state-of-the-art Manor House Stables. Palmer is no stranger to success on the big occasions outside the United Kingdom. Indeed, he was first catapulted into the spotlight when landing the Group One Irish Oaks... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3218414/hugo-palmer-fired-flaming-rib-prepares-become-his-first-hong-kong-runner?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3218414/hugo-palmer-fired-flaming-rib-prepares-become-his-first-hong-kong-runner?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Apr 2023 07:57:36 +0000 Hong Kong’s Boniface Ho Ka-kui is no stranger to success at the top table across Australasia. The owner has savoured multiple Group One wins, including domestically in the Champions Mile with Southern Legend, and in Australia’s richest race, The Everest, with Classique Legend. On Tuesday, the Hong Kong owner has a favourite’s chance of winning another huge prize Down Under. In a story that encapsulates how international borders are – pandemics allowing – no barrier in racing, Ho hopes to win... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3197834/hong-kongs-boniface-ho-chases-melbourne-cup-glory-british-galloper-deauville-legend?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3197834/hong-kongs-boniface-ho-chases-melbourne-cup-glory-british-galloper-deauville-legend?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Oct 2022 05:08:44 +0000 Training racehorses in Newmarket is a tradition that dates back to the 1600s. Over the years, tried and tested training techniques and regimes have been passed down time and time again from trainer to pupil assistant, and the town’s historic gallops – such as the famed Warren Hill – have inspired training facilities around the world. Nevertheless, there is no shortage of outside-the-box thinking going on in yards across the town today, and on Sunday William Haggas will be rewarded for his novel... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3159167/hkir-how-olympic-gold-medallist-unlocked-dubai-honours-potential?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3159167/hkir-how-olympic-gold-medallist-unlocked-dubai-honours-potential?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Dec 2021 04:58:57 +0000 The past two years have been a whirlwind for co-trainers William Muir and Chris Grassick riding the highs and lows with a horse who failed to sell at auction as a foal but has subsequently defied his humble beginnings time and time again. The horse in question, Pyledriver, rose to racing stardom with an impressive victory at Royal Ascot in 2020 and followed this up in June of this year with a maiden Group One for his connections in the Coronation Cup at Epsom. When he lines up in the Group One... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3158922/humble-beginnings-hong-kong-pyledrivers-rise-global-stardom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3158922/humble-beginnings-hong-kong-pyledrivers-rise-global-stardom?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Dec 2021 09:45:35 +0000 Champion by name, champion by nature: Britain’s flat seasonal finale has attracted a truly world-class line-up including Adayar, Mishriff and Palace Pier. Racing fans around the globe will not want to miss it, and thankfully those in Hong Kong will not have to – as a World Pool event, it will be simulcast live by the Hong Kong Jockey Club on Saturday night. Those aforementioned stars are three of the highest-rated racehorses in the world and they confirmed their presence on Thursday to set up... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3152464/worlds-best-show-sensational-british-champions-day?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3152464/worlds-best-show-sensational-british-champions-day?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Oct 2021 06:56:56 +0000 A facile victory in the Group Three Centenary Vase last month saw Glorious Dragon become the latest horse to make the successful leap from British trainer Ed Walker’s stables in rural England to feature-race glory in Hong Kong. The eye-catching grey gelding, who appears to be relishing his recent transfer to Francis Lui Kin-wai’s stable, will make his third appearance in Group One company on Sunday when lining up in the Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup (2,000m). A career best is undoubtedly required if... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3122484/glorious-dragon-latest-group-winner-graduate-ed-walker-academy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3122484/glorious-dragon-latest-group-winner-graduate-ed-walker-academy?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Feb 2021 07:20:00 +0000 He has form around leading Epsom Derby chances Russian Emperor and Pyledriver, but instead of competing in Saturday’s iconic race, Berlin Tango is on a path to the Hong Kong Derby, having been bought by one of the biggest owners in the city, the Siu family. Bloodstock agent Alastair Donald confirmed the move on Monday, the latest in a line of European imports who will sport the famous red and black striped silks as the family strives for its first Hong Kong Derby win. Berlin Tango’s career for... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3091695/one-time-epsom-derby-hope-berlin-tango-now-chasing-hong-kong-derby?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3091695/one-time-epsom-derby-hope-berlin-tango-now-chasing-hong-kong-derby?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Jul 2020 07:02:02 +0000 Two weeks ago, top-level galloper Ka Ying Star put up a career-best effort when placing second in the Group One Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup, just a half-length behind eight-time Group One winner Beauty Generation. As chance would have it, the team who were responsible for bringing the Tony Cruz-trained gelding into the world five years ago at New England Stud over 9,500km away in Newmarket, England, welcomed his full-brother later that same Sunday. Like his older Hong Kong-based brother, the new... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3053017/generation-next-ka-ying-stars-brother-arrives-style?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3053017/generation-next-ka-ying-stars-brother-arrives-style?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 29 Feb 2020 10:19:10 +0000 Huang Kai-wen has enjoyed his fair share of fortune with the European imports that have represented him in Hong Kong, and on Wednesday night the owner added another Group prize to his haul as six-year-old Doctor Geoff landed the Group Three January Cup. Huang’s yellow and lilac silks became almost instantly recognisable upon his entry into ownership in 2014, as his first purchase, Peniaphobia, quickly ascended the sprinting ranks to secure a brace of Group One wins in 2015. More recently, the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3045576/european-imports-shining-huangs-yellow-and-lilac-silks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3045576/european-imports-shining-huangs-yellow-and-lilac-silks?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Jan 2020 09:27:05 +0000 A thoroughbred breeder rarely hits the headlines in Hong Kong. As all of the territory’s racehorses are imported from overseas, the spotlight once a horse has arrived at Sha Tin is very much upon the local trainer and owner. By contrast, the breeder is celebrated loudly in jurisdictions such as Britain or Australia, where the racing industry goes hand in hand with a breeding industry. However, it would be remiss not to acknowledge the standout success that Kirsten Rausing of Lanwades Stud in... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3041077/breeder-brothers-glorious-forever-and-time-warp-hunts-third-straight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3041077/breeder-brothers-glorious-forever-and-time-warp-hunts-third-straight?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Dec 2019 08:41:24 +0000 Superstar jockeys Ryan Moore, Frankie Dettori and Oisin Murphy bring some international sparkle to Sha Tin on Sunday but in among the more established names will be one less familiar to the local crowd, that of 19-year-old Jason Watson. The youngster, who gets the leg up on the Roger Charlton-trained Aspetar in the Group One Longines Hong Kong Vase (2,400m), has become a familiar face in Europe over the past 18 months as he has quickly ascended through the ranks of British jockeys. Having... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3040535/meet-jason-watson-british-racings-rising-star-hong-kong-ambitions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3040535/meet-jason-watson-british-racings-rising-star-hong-kong-ambitions?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Dec 2019 05:45:26 +0000 Eight years ago, British trainer Roger Charlton came within a neck of victory at Hong Kong’s premier race meeting as Cityscape just failed to reel in Able One in the dying strides of the Group One Hong Kong Mile. It was an agonising defeat to come to terms with, especially since Charlton’s horse had to come from gate 12, with the eventual winner drawn in a more favourable gate seven. “It was absolutely gutting to come from so far back, with his wide draw, and just fail by a neck in such a... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3040049/hkir-roger-charlton-seeks-set-record-straight-vase-hope-aspetar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3040049/hkir-roger-charlton-seeks-set-record-straight-vase-hope-aspetar?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 30 Nov 2019 08:16:06 +0000 The attention of the international racing world was focused at Ascot on Saturday, where the world’s two top rated horses, Enable and Crystal Ocean, delivered one of the century’s most memorable tussles in the Group One King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes. After a gruelling 500m of head-to-head sparring, it was Prince Khalid Abdullah’s homebred Enable who came out on top to register a ninth Group One victory of her illustrious career. In winning the contest – hailed earlier in the week by her... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3020428/frankie-dettori-looks-keep-group-one-ball-rolling-goodwood-hat-trick?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3020428/frankie-dettori-looks-keep-group-one-ball-rolling-goodwood-hat-trick?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Jul 2019 01:20:05 +0000 It has been three months since Silvestre de Sousa arrived back in Britain after one of the most successful stints in Hong Kong for a visiting jockey ever. Strong support from owners and trainers allowed the Brazilian to not only surpass the 20 winners that he had hoped for on arrival, but more than double that figure. By the time he boarded the plane on the evening of March 24, he had notched up an impressive 44 victories at a strike rate of around 15 per cent. Walking away from this support and... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3014837/silvestre-de-sousa-proud-sport-king-power-racing-silks-royal-ascot?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3014837/silvestre-de-sousa-proud-sport-king-power-racing-silks-royal-ascot?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Jun 2019 07:57:39 +0000 Followers of European racing may have noticed that there are a handful of contests across Britain’s summer festivals that have a knack of throwing up horses that go on to bigger and better things in Hong Kong. The Britannia Handicap over the straight 1,600m at Royal Ascot, for example, counts high-class Group One performers Beauty Flame, Simply Brilliant, and Born In China among its recent graduates. Another example of such a race is a 2,000m handicap run on the Thursday of the Qatar Goodwood... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3004960/goodwood-race-good-omen-british-exports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3004960/goodwood-race-good-omen-british-exports?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Apr 2019 08:58:03 +0000 Hong Kong-born venture capitalist Johnny Hon Sei-hoe struck gold at Qatar’s Al Rayyan Racecourse at the weekend, with Global Spectrum taking out the Group Two Al Biddah Mile at the prestigious HH The Amir Sword Festival. The 47-year-old Hon is the founder and chairman of London-based corporate finance company Global Group Capital Management and has also been involved in producing movies in Hong Kong. He has had one horse in Hong Kong, the Manfred Man Ka-leung-trained Ultimate Power which had... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2187582/hong-kong-venture-capitalist-johnny-hon-strikes-group-gold-prestigious?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2187582/hong-kong-venture-capitalist-johnny-hon-strikes-group-gold-prestigious?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Feb 2019 08:46:04 +0000 Simply Brilliant lines up for his first Group One contest in Sunday’s Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup, but he is not just representing his connections, he is flying the flag for his super sire Frankel. The Frankie Lor Fu-chuen-trained galloper comes into the event after an impressive victory in the Group Three January Cup at Happy Valley and has been a model of consistency since arriving in Hong Kong from Britain in early 2017. Bred by Cheveley Park Stud and formerly among the 220-odd horses under the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2186427/simply-brilliant-trying-secure-frankels-first-hong-kong-group-one?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2186427/simply-brilliant-trying-secure-frankels-first-hong-kong-group-one?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 16 Feb 2019 02:41:50 +0000 It is no mean feat for a horse sourced from Europe to win on its first start in Hong Kong. Adjusting to life in cosier quarters, as well as a new climate and routine, can naturally affect some significantly more than others. In Ka Ying Star, however, owner Leung Shek Kong looks to have found himself a horse that has slotted into life at Sha Tin with consummate ease. Formerly trained by Andrew Balding at the picturesque Park House Stables in rural Kingsclere, Ka Ying Star (formerly known as Urban... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2183588/leading-classic-mile-hope-ka-ying-star-slots-straight-life-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2183588/leading-classic-mile-hope-ka-ying-star-slots-straight-life-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jan 2019 02:00:15 +0000 Vincent Ho Chak-yiu helped Mark Johnston become the most successful trainer in British racing history during the summer and the leading local jockey will be trying to boost his connections to that country in Sunday’s Group One Centenary Sprint Cup. Ho took the opportunity to get some extra experience in Europe over the break and he made an immediate impression by winning his first ever start in the country on 6-1 shot X Rated at Haydock Park. He said of his first taste of a British racecourse,... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2182712/vincent-ho-out-maintain-strong-british-connection-ironically-named-born?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2182712/vincent-ho-out-maintain-strong-british-connection-ironically-named-born?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Jan 2019 00:01:58 +0000 Alastair Donald, the British bloodstock agent responsible for finding Glorious Forever and Time Warp, boasts the extraordinary feat of having sourced half of Wednesday night’s Group Three January Cup field on behalf of Hong Kong clients. As well as the latter of these two Hong Kong Cup-winning brothers, who will break from barrier 10, Donald brokered the deals for Simply Brilliant, Insayshable, Dinozzo and Citron Spirit to move to the territory. Having established a link-up with John Moore in... https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2181299/british-bloodstock-agent-alastair-donald-sources-half-january-cup-field?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/2181299/british-bloodstock-agent-alastair-donald-sources-half-january-cup-field?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Jan 2019 03:59:03 +0000