Ricky Yiu Poon-fai celebrated a superb four-timer at Sha Tin on Saturday, headlined by his exciting staying prospect Victor Supreme who made a statement in the Class Four IP Jug Handicap (1,800m).
The son of Super Seth put in a dominant performance to break through with a commanding victory by four and a half lengths over Firefoot with Vincent Ho Chak-yiu in the saddle.
Yiu is eyeing a tilt at next season’s Hong Kong Derby (2,000m) with the three-year-old who relished the step up in distance for the first time.
“He won by a reasonable margin – I thought he was a winning chance by maybe a length or two, but not in this style! I’m surprised,” Yiu said.
“He’s an up-and-coming long distance horse, even a mile is a bit sharp. I think a mile plus – 1,800m, 2,000m – he’ll be one of the Derby candidates. When the first stage Derby entries open, I’ll put him in. The way he looks, he’ll be a decent stayer.”
Yiu enjoyed two of his four wins in tandem with Zac Purton, courtesy of Rising Force and Lucrative Eight.
Rising Force added to his impressive Sha Tin record with a fifth win and first at Class Two level in the Li Cup (1,200m).
After jumping fast, the Deep Field gelding went straight to the lead and controlled the race, thanks to a super steer from Purton, going on to beat Pakistan Legacy by one and a quarter lengths.
“That was a great performance by Purton, he rode a very good race. He pinged out of the gate like a bullet and that’s a big advantage. He is a pretty versatile horse; he’s sharp, he’s got natural gate speed – your typical sprinter,” Yiu said.
The consistent Lucrative Eight put Road To Glory away by three lengths when breaking through with a comprehensive victory in the Class Four Chow Silver Plate (1,200m). The three-year-old has shown plenty of ability, despite a hot-headed temperament.
“He was very naughty going to the gates,” Purton said.
“He’s very immature, he might be better next season with blinkers on. He’s done a good job, he’s been consistent and I think next season he’ll show his best.”
The Foxwedge gelding sat behind the leader after beginning well from barrier one and looked in danger of not receiving a run when badly held up until the 200m, however blasted through when the gap appeared to give Yiu back-to-back wins with two promising three-year-olds in the space of 30 minutes.
“It was a very brave run for a youngster, he went through the gap really strongly. For the time being I’ll keep him at 1,200m, until I think the 1,400m becomes necessary,” Yiu said.
Chill Easy completed the four-timer when going back-to-back in the Class Three Lee Trophy (1,400m), piloted by Jerry Chau Chun-lok. The pair overcame the widest barrier of 14 and topweight of 133lb to win by an easy two and a quarter lengths over Endeared thanks to a positive ride from Chau.
Elsewhere on the card, Frankie Lor Fu-chuen unleashed the impressive Hong Kong debutant Solid State, who blitzed his rivals to win by an ultra-impressive five and a quarter lengths in the Class Three Philip Chen Trophy (1,200m) with Alexis Badel aboard.
“I knew he seemed to be a quality horse and a nice individual,” Badel said.
“He’s done everything correctly in the mornings, so I was very confident from gate two. I didn’t plan to lead but he began well and I put him on the rail, used his action. He’s got a lot of speed, big stride and I was surprised to see that he was a maiden in Australia, but he’s obviously a nice horse.”
Francis Lui Kin-wai, John Size and Ethan Brown also enjoyed doubles on Saturday, with Brown riding a winner for both trainers.
“It’s a good way to finish the season. I’m getting great support and I’m just happy to execute and show them what I’m capable of,” Brown said.
