26/09/2021  Shatin  Race 10

Whilst in the saddling stalls, NABOO ATTACK had its left front plate refitted. NABOO ATTACK was examined by the Veterinary Officer who said in his opinion it was suitable to race. LOVING A BOOM was crowded for room on jumping between FAT TURTLE and SUNNY BOY which was bumped and taken out by IGNITING which got its head on the side and shifted out despite the efforts of its rider. In this incident, FAT TURTLE became unbalanced after being bumped on the hindquarters by LOVING A BOOM. SHINING GEM began only fairly and then was crowded for room between NABOO ATTACK and WINNER METHOD which shifted out. After this, SHINING GEM and NABOO ATTACK were steadied to obtain cover. From a wide barrier, SHINING ACE was steadied in the early stages to obtain cover. Approaching the 900 Metres, CALIFORNIA RAD shifted in and raced tight outside the hindquarters of WINNER METHOD. Approaching and passing the 900 Metres, IGNITING got its head up when awkwardly placed behind TRILLION WIN which was being steadied to obtain cover behind WINNER METHOD. After being crossed by WINNER METHOD, TRILLION WIN commenced to travel keenly and got its head on the side and lay out towards the hindquarters of CALIFORNIA RAD, resulting in TRILLION WIN losing ground. IGNITING, which was following TRILLION WIN, again got its head up and was severely checked away from the heels of that horse in consequence. Making the turn after the 900 Metres, KILLER BEE got its head on the side, lay out and bumped PRIVATE ROCKET which became unbalanced. After this, KILLER BEE travelled keenly and got its head up when awkwardly placed close to the heels of SUNNY BOY. NABOO ATTACK, which was following KILLER BEE, shifted out away from the heels of that horse in consequence, resulting in SHINING ACE being taken wider and without cover. After the 900 Metres, FAT TURTLE was left racing wide and without cover. Rounding the Home Turn, SHINING GEM was hampered when crowded for room inside NABOO ATTACK (Z Purton) which attempted to improve to the inside of KILLER BEE as that horse was being directed to the outside of SUNNY BOY. As NABOO ATTACK was improving into tight running, KILLER BEE shifted in marginally, resulting in NABOO ATTACK being taken in onto SHINING GEM which was hampered. Z Purton was advised that whilst KILLER BEE had had some bearing in advance of NABOO ATTACK at this stage, nonetheless he must exercise due care when improving into tight runs to ensure that other horses are not hampered. Approaching the 100 Metres, NABOO ATTACK was momentarily awkwardly placed behind CALIFORNIA RAD before being shifted to the outside of that horse to continue improving. When questioned, Z Purton stated that after the 600 Metres he was following PRIVATE ROCKET. He said the tempo in the middle stages was not particularly fast and felt that had he have shifted NABOO ATTACK to the outside of PRIVATE ROCKET, the horse may have been left somewhat flat-footed when the pace of the race increased. He said horses racing towards the inside in today’s races appeared to have been better suited than those making their runs out wide and therefore when he observed KILLER BEE commencing to shift to the outside of SUNNY BOY, he felt that it was a better option to improve to the inside of that horse rather than shift out. He said after being momentarily awkwardly placed inside KILLER BEE near the 450 Metres, NABOO ATTACK had clear and uninterrupted running until being inconvenienced near the 100 Metres, however, he was of the opinion that NABOO ATTACK had its opportunity in today’s race and that given the manner in which the track was racing today, the decision to pursue inside runs was supported. When questioned, regarding the performance of KILLER BEE, J Moreira stated that, in his opinion, the horse was disappointing in today’s race. He said after being awkwardly placed behind SUNNY BOY after the 800 Metres, KILLER BEE travelled well enough to be able to finish off the race. He said KILLER BEE was again awkwardly placed close to the heels of SUNNY BOY rounding the Home Turn at which stage NABOO ATTACK was able to quicken better than KILLER BEE. He said at the 400 Metres KILLER BEE obtained clear running and the horse did not close off the race as it had done in its previous races. He said whilst KILLER BEE stayed on over the concluding stages, nonetheless, in his opinion, the horse did not sprint as it had done previously. He added that KILLER BEE did make a respiratory noise during the race, however, it had done this previously and therefore he did not consider this to have impacted on the horse’s performance today. A veterinary inspection of KILLER BEE immediately following the race found that horse to have an abnormal respiratory noise. After the race, K Teetan (WINNER METHOD) stated that after riding his mount along in the early stages, he was able to clear TRILLION WIN and obtained the lead after the 1000 Metres. He said with CALIFORNIA RAD positioned to the outside of WINNER METHOD after the 800 Metres, WINNER METHOD would not relax as well as he had hoped and, in his opinion, travelled too keenly. He added he placed WINNER METHOD under pressure rounding the Home Turn, however, the horse was disappointing in its failure to finish off the race. A veterinary inspection of WINNER METHOD immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. A veterinary inspection of FAT TURTLE immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. KILLER BEE, TRILLION WIN and NABOO ATTACK were sent for sampling.