01/06/2014  Shatin  Race 3

ISHVARA and NATURAL EIGHT were slow to begin. ALWAYS WONDERFUL began awkwardly and lost ground. Shortly after the start, OPTIMISM was steadied when crowded for room between OUR HONOUR and FOREVER GENKI which shifted out after making contact with GOLDEN BAUHINIA. Approaching the 300 Metres, ISHVARA was bumped by FOREVER GENKI which got its head on the side and shifted in away from NATURAL EIGHT which was shifted in. At the 200 Metres, HIGHLAND DRAGON, which was giving ground, was momentarily steadied away from the heels of OUR HONOUR which shifted in. When questioned, B Prebble stated that he had trialed RIBOT LEGACY in the lead up to today’s race and the horse had trialed strongly. He said on occasions the horse had wanted to do too much in the trial and would not relax. He said today after beginning well, RIBOT LEGACY did not feel comfortable in its action and he had to ride the horse from the 900 Metres in an endeavour to have it travel better. He said after the 700 Metres he became concerned with the action of RIBOT LEGACY as the horse, despite being ridden along, did not travel comfortably and appeared to him to be very short in its action. He added at the 600 Metres RIBOT LEGACY’s action deteriorated and he considered retiring it from the race but as he was not of the opinion that the horse had broken down, he continued to ride it along including slapping it down the shoulder with the whip. He said whilst RIBOT LEGACY’s action did not deteriorate further, the horse still felt uncomfortable in its action and it was until after the 300 Metres that the horse commenced to travel more fluently. He said whilst he had to continue to place RIBOT LEGACY under pressure in the run to the line and the horse found the line satisfactorily, nonetheless, in his opinion, the horse did not feel completely comfortable in its action. He added on return to the unplaced area, RIBOT LEGACY appeared to trot out soundly, however, the horse felt to him as though it did not feel entirely correct behind or may be experiencing a back problem. A veterinary inspection of RIBOT LEGACY immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. Before being allowed to race again, RIBOT LEGACY 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 HIGHLAND DRAGON immediately following the race revealed the horse to be a “roarer” which had previously been reported. SUGAR and MELLIFLUENT were sent for sampling.