19/09/2021  Shatin  Race 1

OH BRAVO and BLAZING BEAT bumped at the start. BLAZING BEAT then shifted out and bumped SUPER FAST. Passing the 1100 Metres, FAIRY FLOSS travelled keenly and was awkwardly placed close to the heels of LONDON LUCKYSTAR. Then approaching and passing the 700 Metres, FAIRY FLOSS commenced to travel keenly and got its head up when racing close to the heels of LADY FIRST. After the 300 Metres, TOYCOON shifted out under pressure, resulting in BLAZING BEAT being crowded for room and taken out onto SUPER FAST which was racing tight inside OH BRAVO. This resulted in BLAZING BEAT bumping the hindquarters of SUPER FAST, causing BLAZING BEAT to be hampered. LONDON LUCKYSTAR, which was following, was shifted in away from the heels of BLAZING BEAT in consequence. Over the concluding stages, GAMEPLAYER TIMES got its head on the side and lay out. When questioned, C Y Ho stated that he was instructed to ride SUPER FAST positively in the early stages and obtain a forward position. He said if possible, from the outside barrier, he was asked to try and lead, however, if another horse was intent on leading, then it was acceptable for him to take a trailing position. He said after beginning only fairly he rode SUPER FAST along for a considerable distance in the early stages in an attempt to clear runners to his inside. He said, despite being ridden along, SUPER FAST was slow to muster speed and passing the winning post on the first occasion was left racing in a three wide position and without cover. He said he allowed SUPER FAST to remain racing outside the leaders rounding the turn with a view to improving his position forward of BLAZING BEAT along the Back Straight. He said he felt he was able to do this because the tempo at the relevant time, in his opinion, was not fast. He said making the turn near the 1200 Metres he observed BLAZING BEAT travelling strongly between SUPER FAST and TOYCOON, however, due to the tempo, he believed that there was an option to improve into the lead, accordingly he urged his mount forward after the 1200 Metres. He said, despite being ridden along, SUPER FAST was unable to show sufficient speed to cross BLAZING BEAT and this resulted in SUPER FAST travelling wide and without cover throughout the race. He added that the horse was carrying top weight in today’s race and this may have contributed to SUPER FAST not being able to show the necessary speed to cross runners to its inside. When questioned, A Badel stated that approaching the 1200 Metres OH BRAVO became unbalanced when having to be steadied away from the heels of EL JEFE. He said as the tempo of the race at this time was not strong, he elected to shift to the outside of EL JEFE as he was aware that SUPER FAST was racing in a three wide position without cover outside the lead and he felt that it was the best option to allow his mount to improve its position to follow SUPER FAST if possible rather than having to restrain away from the heels of EL JEFE. He said as he was improving his position, EL JEFE shifted out from behind LADY FIRST into a three wide position which resulted in OH BRAVO being taken out to a four wide position without cover. He added as he had already commenced to improve his position, he elected to continue forward of EL JEFE rather than restrain his mount behind that horse which resulted in OH BRAVO then racing wide and without cover for the remainder of the race. When questioned regarding the performance of FAIRY FLOSS, J Moreira stated that, in his opinion, the circumstances of the race provided the reason for the horse not being able to close off. He said making the turn after the winning post on the first occasion he had to steady away from the heels of LONDON LUCKYSTAR which was being steadied. He said this resulted in FAIRY FLOSS racing further back in the field than he had hoped. He said at various times in the middle stages FAIRY FLOSS travelled keenly and was awkwardly placed close to heels. He added that rounding the Home Turn when he attempted to gain momentum on FAIRY FLOSS, he again had to steady away from the heels of runners in front which meant that FAIRY FLOSS was not able to quicken as he would have liked. He said after obtaining clear running on FAIRY FLOSS near the 300 Metres, his mount finished off the race satisfactorily in his opinion given the manner in which the race had been run. A veterinary inspection of FAIRY FLOSS immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. A veterinary inspection of EL JEFE immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. FAIRY FLOSS, GAMEPLAYER TIMES and TOYCOON were sent for sampling.