08/02/2023  Happy Valley  Race 8

Whilst parading behind the barriers, NERVOUS WITNESS made contact with a rail. NERVOUS WITNESS was examined by the Veterinary Officer and passed suitable to race. ASTROLOGER, which was fractious in the barriers, jumped awkwardly. HANDSOME BO BO jumped awkwardly and made contact with the left side of its barrier. HARMONY AND RICH jumped awkwardly. When caught wide in the early stages and racing tight to the inside of KURPANY, PING HAI GALAXY was then shifted in behind runners to avoid racing wide. K H Chan (KURPANY) pleaded guilty to a charge of careless riding [Rule 100(1)] in that near the 600 Metres he made insufficient effort to prevent his mount from shifting in when not clear of HARMONY AND RICH, resulting in HARMONY AND RICH being taken in and crowding the running of CAMPIONE, causing CAMPIONE to be checked, striking the rail, and lose the running to which it was rightfully entitled. In the circumstances, K H Chan was suspended from riding in races for a period to commence on Wednesday, 15 February 2023 and to expire on Monday, 20 February 2023 on which day he may resume race riding (2 Hong Kong racedays). Passing the 500 Metres, ASTROLOGER momentarily raced tight to the inside of COMPUTER PATCH. On straightening, CAMPIONE (Apprentice Y L Chung) shifted to the outside of KURPANY to secure clear running, resulting in HANDSOME BO BO being steadied away from the heels of CAMPIONE and taken wider. As a result, FAMILY FOLKS, which was positioned to the outside of HANDSOME BO BO, was also taken wider. Apprentice Chung was advised to exercise more care when shifting ground. When questioned, S De Sousa (REWARDING TOGETHER) stated that his intention was to settle more forward on his mount tonight, but after being slow to begin REWARDING TOGETHER settled further back than had been intended. He said from the 600 Metres he commenced to place his mount under pressure and after shifting to the outside of COMPUTER PATCH soon after straightening, REWARDING TOGETHER ran home well. REWARDING TOGETHER, ASTROLOGER and GRATEFUL HEART were sent for sampling.