Hong Kong Racing Tips: Speedy to keep Yiu’s Luck going in Valley feature
HAPPY Valley in Hong Kong hosts a nine-race card this afternoon and punters should be aware that racing takes place on the infamous C+3 track.
Width-wise, this is the narrowest of the seven tracks at the Valley, with the distance from rail to rail measuring only 19.5 metres.
With one or two exceptions, this is a course which historically favours horses drawn in stalls one to five who are positioned up or near the early pace from the off.
For obvious reasons, it’s very hard for horses to get an uninterrupted passage from the back of the field turning into the short home-straight, which only measures one-and-a-half furlongs.
Favourite backers continue to have a tough time at present, with only two market leaders obliging at Happy Valley or Sha Tin from 18 races last week.
Even the betting public’s favourite jockeys, Joao Moreira and particularly Zac Purton, are not helping, with both suffering recent bouts of seconditus.
On a more positive note, popular local trainer Ricky Yiu has got his stable firing on all cylinders since the season started early last month.
Yiu, who has been training in Hong Kong for nearly 25 years and is renowned for his handling of the legendry Sacred Kingdom and more recently Amber Sky, has had his best start in years, with 10 winners and 10 places from just 52 runners.
He has visited the winners’ circle in four of the last five race-meetings and will surely be confident of continuing that trend when he sends a handful of contenders to the inner-city track today.
His best chance of success looks to be the Moreira-ridden SPEEDY LUCK who lines-up in the Longines Cup Handicap (2.15pm) over six furlongs.
This lightly raced four-year-old was never sighted early on in his HK career, but showed evidence of improvement with an eye-catching trial before the season started.
He was a promising fourth to the well-handicapped Ezra on his seasonal reappearance over seven furlongs at Sha Tin, suggesting he is now at his peak and a drop down in distance looks sure to suit.
From a favourable draw he is mapped to have an ideal journey, sitting just behind the leaders before making his charge for glory down the home straight.
This looks a competitive handicap on paper with the likes of Purton-ridden Happy Time, who trialled well recently, likely to prove the principle threat.
Yiu also saddles an interesting contender in AFTER ME, who races in the Class 5 Sir John Handicap (12.15pm) over five furlongs.
Normally Class 5 races are not betting mediums as these are events are for horses with limited ability or for those coming to the end of their careers.
After Me has plummeted down the handicap after failing to catch the judge’s eye in a dozen races, before switching to the Yiu stable.
A change of scenery and training regime seems to have gone down well though, and this former Irish galloper has at last shown a glimmer of ability in two races this season, despite suffering awkward draws.
Although having recently finished behind a number of today’s rivals, he finally gets the plum inside draw which he can utilise to good effect in the closing stages of the race.
POINTERS
After Me e/w 12.15pm Happy Valley
Speedy Luck 2.15pm Happy Valley