01/05/2016  Shatin  Race 2

STRIKE EAGLE lifted its front feet off the ground as the start was effected and consequently was slow to begin. SWEET BEAN was slow to begin. Despite being ridden along in the early stages, ENJOY THE GAME failed to muster speed. From the outside barriers, SPICY SIAM and BLAZING PASS were shifted across behind runners in the early stages. Near the 2000 Metres, ENJOY THE GAME momentarily raced tight between LOYAL CRAFTSMAN and PERCY JACKSON, both of which shifted ground. After the 1100 Metres, SWEET BEAN shifted out away from the heels of PERCY JACKSON, resulting in ENJOY THE GAME being bumped and taken wider. After the 1000 Metres, SWEET BEAN was steadied away from the heels of ENJOY THE GAME. After the 600 Metres, HOLY STAR got its head on the side and lay in under pressure, resulting in VIVA GUY being bumped and racing tight inside HOLY STAR. Near the 300 Metres, VIVA GUY shifted out and bumped the hindquarters of HOLY STAR. HOLY STAR then became unbalanced and lay in, resulting in VIVA GUY and HOLY STAR racing tight and making contact passing the 200 Metres. After improving into tight running inside WIN CHANCE, HOLY STAR and VIVA GUY made contact on a number of occasions over the final 200 Metres, causing both horses to become unbalanced. Just prior to the winning post, D Whyte, the rider of WIN CHANCE, stopped riding due to HOLY STAR becoming unbalanced and shifting out to the inside of WIN CHANCE. When questioned, Apprentice K K Chiong (SPICY SIAM) stated that she shifted her mount out at the entrance to the Back Straight in expectation of the tempo slackening and felt that SPICY SIAM was travelling well enough to be able to make a forward mid-race move. She said after shifting to the outside of SWEET BEAN, SPICY SIAM was then reluctant to improve its position and for this reason she was not able to make ground. She said when racing outside ENJOY THE GAME, SPICY SIAM was taken wider near the 1100 Metres and after this she shifted her mount back in to obtain a trailing position at the rear of the field. A veterinary inspection of FAITHFUL BOY, SPICY SIAM and ENJOY THE GAME immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. KING BOUNTIFUL and MALAYAN PEARL were sent for sampling.