04/01/2023  Happy Valley  Race 1

MISTER ARM was withdrawn on 3.1.23 by order of the Stewards acting on veterinary advice (lame right hind) and was replaced by Standby Declared Starter REGENCY MASTER (H Bowman). Before being allowed to race again, MISTER ARM will be subjected to an official veterinary examination. PRIDE OF DRAGON began awkwardly and shifted out, resulting in FLASH FAMOUS losing ground when crowded for room inside FAITHFUL TRINITY. BEAUTY NOVA began awkwardly. REGENCY MASTER began only fairly. From the outside barriers, AMAZING NEWS and SURE WIN WIN were shifted across behind runners in the early stages. Passing the 1100 Metres, JACK WIN got its head up when being checked away from the heels of BEAUTY NOVA. AMAZING NEWS, which was following JACK WIN, was checked away from the heels of that horse in consequence and was then left racing wide and without cover. When JACK WIN was checked away from the heels of BEAUTY NOVA, JACK WIN shifted in, resulting in FLASH FAMOUS becoming unbalanced when crowded for room. After this, JACK WIN continued to travel keenly. After being left racing wide and without cover, AMAZING NEWS was then allowed to improve its position after the 1000 Metres to race in the lead passing the 600 Metres. Approaching the 650 Metres, when improving to the outside of OUR CREED (Apprentice Y L Chung), FAITHFUL TRINITY was steadied away from the heels of that horse when OUR CREED shifted out from behind STAR OF GLORY to follow AMAZING NEWS. FAITHFUL TRINITY then continued to be awkwardly placed close to the heels of OUR CREED until passing the 600 Metres. Apprentice Chung was severely reprimanded and told that he must ensure that he is clear of other runners when shifting ground in similar circumstances. WIN WIN CHARITY, which was following FAITHFUL TRINITY, was awkwardly placed close to the heels of that horse in consequence. BEAUTY NOVA, which was following WIN WIN CHARITY, shifted out from behind that horse, resulting in FLASH FAMOUS being taken wider and without cover. Then making the turn after the 600 Metres, WIN WIN CHARITY was checked when attempting to improve into running which was not fully available between FAITHFUL TRINITY which continued to be placed close to the heels of OUR CREED and REGENCY MASTER which, when laying in, was racing tight outside the heels of CHARIZARD. After the 500 Metres, WIN WIN CHARITY lay out and was awkwardly placed inside the heels of FAITHFUL TRINITY. Approaching and passing the 500 Metres, SURE WIN WIN raced in restricted room inside REGENCY MASTER which improved to be racing close to the heels of CHARIZARD. At the 250 Metres, STAR OF GLORY was momentarily eased when racing in restricted room between PRIDE OF DRAGON and OUR CREED which lay in. After the race, S De Sousa stated that, in his opinion, FLASH FAMOUS was not suited by the manner in which the race was run in the middle stages. He said he had to ride FLASH FAMOUS aggressively in the early stages to have the horse as close as possible after being hampered at the start. He said despite riding his mount along, FLASH FAMOUS did not show any early speed and consequently raced towards the rear of the field. He added that when the tempo slackened, FLASH FAMOUS travelled keenly and was awkwardly placed behind REGENCY MASTER after the 1100 Metres. He said when the pace of the race increased noticeably after the 800 Metres, FLASH FAMOUS was left flat-footed and was not able to quicken. He said after coming off the bridle FLASH FAMOUS then finished the race off only fairly over the concluding stages. A veterinary inspection of FLASH FAMOUS immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. After the race, an endoscopic examination was conducted on SURE WIN WIN at the request of Trainer T P Yung. The Veterinary Surgeon said this examination showed a substantial amount of blood in the horse’s trachea. Before being allowed to race again, SURE WIN WIN will be subjected to an official veterinary examination. A veterinary inspection of OUR CREED immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. OUR CREED, AMAZING NEWS and CHARIZARD were sent for sampling.