01/05/2022  Shatin  Race 9

On arrival at the Start, the tongue tie applied to KASI FARASI was refitted. SURE JOYFUL and DOUBLE SIX POP bumped at the start, resulting in both horses becoming unbalanced. FREE FOAL and CHIU CHOW BROTHER bumped on jumping. KASI FARASI shifted out on jumping and inconvenienced HAPPY DAY. KASI FARASI was then steadied to obtain cover. AURORA HERO shifted out at the start and bumped GENERAL WINNER. After this, AURORA HERO raced tight between HAPPY DAY and GENERAL WINNER which shifted in. AURORA HERO was then steadied to obtain cover. Also from a wide barrier, TUNG HAYE HAYE was steadied to obtain cover in the early stages. Despite being ridden along for some distance in the early stages, CIRCUIT ELITE failed to muster speed. Passing the 1200 Metres, KASI FARASI was bumped by HAPPY DAY which shifted in away from the heels of CIRCUIT ELITE. Approaching the 900 Metres, LIFELINE VISION shifted in and bumped the hindquarters of FREE FOAL. FREE FOAL then shifted in marginally, resulting in SURE JOYFUL becoming unbalanced when momentarily racing tight inside FREE FOAL. Passing the 900 Metres, PLIKCLONE got its head up when awkwardly placed close to the heels of LIFELINE VISION. MY INTELLIGENT was left racing wide and without cover near the 900 Metres and then approaching the 600 Metres was taken wider again by LIFELINE VISION which shifted out. At the entrance to the Straight, CHIU CHOW BROTHER was bumped by FREE FOAL which shifted out from behind DOUBLE SIX POP to obtain clear running. HAPPY DAY had some difficulty obtaining clear running in the early part of the Straight. Approaching the 50 Metres, HAPPY DAY was hampered and shifted out away from the heels of MY INTELLIGENT which got its head on the side and shifted out under pressure. After the race, L Hewitson reported that given the manner in which SUPER HORNET failed to finish the race off today as compared to its most recent start, he was of the opinion that the horse did not appreciate today’s track conditions. A veterinary inspection of SUPER HORNET immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. Also after the race, A Badel was not able to offer any explanation for the disappointing performance of DOUBLE SIX POP which, after leading today’s race, came under pressure after the 400 Metres and then weakened noticeably over the final 200 Metres. He said as he was concerned that DOUBLE SIX POP may be experiencing some internal issues, he did not ride the horse out over the concluding stages. A veterinary inspection of DOUBLE SIX POP immediately following the race which included an endoscopic examination showed a substantial amount of blood and mucus in the horse's trachea and also found the horse to be a "roarer”. Before being allowed to race again, DOUBLE SIX POP will be subjected to an official veterinary examination. A veterinary inspection of GENERAL WINNER immediately following the race revealed that the horse was displaying an irregular heart rhythm. Before being allowed to race again, GENERAL WINNER will be required to perform satisfactorily in a barrier trial and be subjected to an official veterinary examination. A veterinary inspection of CHIU CHOW WARRIOR immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. HAPPY DAY, FREE FOAL and MY INTELLIGENT were sent for sampling.