16/01/2010  Shatin  Race 8

On arrival at the Start, it was noted that CHAMPION MOUNT had blood in its mouth. CHAMPION MOUNT was examined by the Veterinary Officer who said it had a small cut to its tongue, however, it was, in his opinion, suitable to race. HEADSIWIN began awkwardly and lost ground at the start. Shortly after the start, LOCAL POWER was steadied when crowded for room between RIBOT LEGEND and SPINNAKER which got its head on the side and shifted in slightly. Between the 1400 Metres and the 1200 Metres, ROYAL PEGASUS raced close to the heels of CENTRAL ROLE. In the early part of the Straight, FLORAL NIRVANA was hampered by MY GOAL which got its head on the side and lay in. Then near the 350 Metres, FLORAL NIRVANA was checked away from the heels of ROYAL PEGASUS when racing behind that horse and tight inside MY GOAL. FLORAL NIRVANA was then unable to obtain clear running until near the 200 Metres. For the majority of the race, ROYAL PEGASUS travelled wide and without cover. When questioned regarding the disappointing performance of BRAVE SPIRIT, M Chadwick stated that the horse was able to obtain the lead without having to be pressured to do so. He said that after obtaining the lead, BRAVE SPIRIT travelled well until the entrance to the Straight at which time it came under pressure. He said in the Straight BRAVE SPIRIT did not respond to his riding and was disappointing. Mr A S Cruz, the trainer of BRAVE SPIRIT, stated that the horse had trained on well since its disappointing performance last start at Sha Tin over 1800 Metres. He said having in mind that run as well as today’s performance, it is now his intention to bring BRAVE SPIRIT back in distance to 1400 Metres in the hope that the horse will be able to race more competitively. When questioned, Y T Cheng stated that he had been instructed not to lead on MY GOAL today, but rather to obtain a position behind the speed with cover. He said from barrier 13, he did not ride MY GOAL along in the early stages due to him having been instructed not to lead on the horse. He said he had hoped to obtain a forward position with cover behind CENTRAL ROLE, however, he was unable to obtain this position due to ROYAL PEGASUS racing to his inside. He added for this reason, near the 1200 Metres, he steadied MY GOAL in order to shift in and obtain a position behind ROYAL PEGASUS with cover. He said he was able to obtain this position near the 800 Metres, however, as a consequence, MY GOAL raced further back today than had been intended. He said at the entrance to the Straight MY GOAL commenced to lay in and weakened noticeably when placed under pressure in the Straight. Mr D J Hall, the trainer of MY GOAL, stated that it was felt that with runners able to take up forward positions having been drawn closer to the inside, too much use would have to be made of MY GOAL to go forward and lead from barrier 13. He said, for this reason, he instructed Y T Cheng to obtain cover on the horse if possible behind the speed. He did say that he advised Jockey Cheng that if MY GOAL had to be taken back further in order to obtain cover, then this was acceptable. The performance of MY GOAL, which finished runner-up at its most recent start, was considered unacceptable. Before being allowed to race again, MY GOAL will be required to perform to the satisfaction of the Stewards in an official barrier trial and be subjected to an official veterinary examination. A veterinary inspection of BRAVE SPIRIT and MY GOAL after the race did not show any significant findings. CHAMPION MOUNT, HAPPY SEVEN and RIBOT LEGEND were sent for sampling.