09/06/2021  Happy Valley  Race 9

TRANSCENDENT was withdrawn on 8.6.21 by order of the Stewards acting on veterinary advice (lame left fore) and was replaced by Standby Declared Starter HARMONY N HOME (R Maia). Before being allowed to race again, TRANSCENDENT will be subjected to an official veterinary examination. IGNITING began awkwardly and lost ground. TRIPLE TRIPLE shifted in at the start and bumped HARMONY N HOME. LOCKHEED shifted out abruptly at the start, resulting in VILLA FIONN losing ground when crowded for room inside RACING FIGHTER which was also hampered, shifted out and bumped YOO YOO KING. After this, from wide barriers, VILLA FIONN and YOO YOO KING were steadied to obtain cover. From the outside barrier, THE CROWN was also steadied in the early stages and shifted across behind runners. Despite being aggressively ridden in the early stages, RACING FIGHTER failed to muster speed and shifted across behind runners in the early stages. After the 1000 Metres, VILLA FIONN raced tight inside RACING FIGHTER which was in turn racing tight inside YOO YOO KING which at this time was awkwardly placed inside the heels of THE CROWN. Passing the 900 Metres, LOVING A BOOM was crowded for room inside TRIPLE TRIPLE which was shifted in away from the heels of SIGHT SUCCESS (C Schofield) which shifted in when not properly clear. C Schofield was reprimanded and told to ensure that he provides sufficient clearance when shifting ground in similar circumstances. Near the 750 Metres, YOO YOO KING became unbalanced when awkwardly placed outside the heels of LOCKHEED. Near the 450 Metres, HARMONY N BLESSED brushed the running rail and became unbalanced. HARMONY N BLESSED then made the Home Turn awkwardly, shifted out and bumped MCLUCKY, causing both horses to become unbalanced. Passing the 200 Metres, IGNITING raced in restricted room inside HARMONY N BLESSED which got its head on the side and lay in away from LOVING A BOOM. At the 150 Metres, the whip of C Schofield was knocked from his grasp by the whip of Apprentice C L Chau (MCLUCKY). A veterinary inspection of THE CROWN and HARMONY N BLESSED immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. IGNITING, MCLUCKY and SIGHT SUCCESS were sent for sampling.