Hong Kong Vase | Horse Racing Free Tips

Pyledriver To Miss Breeders’ Cup

Fan favourite Pyledriver (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire}), not seen at the races since defeating Torquator Tasso (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}) in the G1 King George & Queen Elizabeth Diamond S. at Ascot July 23, will not be ready for a tilt at the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf at Keeneland Race Course Nov. 5, co-trainer William Muir told At The Races Monday.

“I think it will come too soon and there's no way I'm putting pressure on him at any stage,” the conditioner told At The Races's Luke Harvey. “He's swimming every day and doing loads of it and he's in the swimming pool with a high current and he goes through it like he's a jet plane. But I don't want to come back and go straight into having to gallop, gallop, and if I'm going to America for Breeders' Cup, I need to be 100% fit. It's coming quickly.”

Winner of the G2 King Edward VII S. at Royal Ascot as a 3-year-old, Pyledriver earned a maiden Group 1 success in last year's G1 Coronation Cup on Derby weekend and closed the season with a runner-up effort in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Vase. A close fourth in the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic this past March, he was beaten into second in defence of his Coronation Cup before defying odds of 18-1 at Ascot last time.

A trip to the Far East appears in the offing once more for Pyledriver, all things equal.

“Our options have always been Breeders' Cup, Japan Cup or Hong Kong,” Muir said. “The Japan Cup may well come right, and if so, we'll nominate him for the Japan Cup, and if we get there we get there. If not, we've got Hong Kong, if not, we have to wait for the Sheema Classic.”

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Middle East Campaign For Pyledriver

In the wake of Pyledriver (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire})'s second-place finish in Sunday's G1 Hong Kong Vase, co-trainer William Muir has said that the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic is on the soon-to-be 5-year-old's agenda, with a stop at the Saudi Cup meeting along the way a possibility.

“Everything's on the table,” Muir said. “He's definitely going to have a winter campaign and it's going to end up at the Sheema Classic before he comes home to have a little bit of a break. Let's keep our fingers crossed, we all know sport is a cruel thing at times but he loved it [on Sunday]. He's taken it in his stride.

“If it does happen to be the Saudi Cup [next] that will give him a couple of months. He's got plenty of time to freshen up for it so he should be spot on, then the Sheema Classic would be the big target after that. He'll come back and have a little break before we get him ready for the King George or the Juddmonte, one of those two, before the Arc.”

Pyledriver was beaten only by the defending winner Glory Vase (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), who also won the race two years ago, in the Vase.

“My initial thought when they turned for home was that the French filly [Ebaiyra, third] was travelling very strongly, and then I saw her come off the bridle,” said Muir. “We were in a very difficult spot to see clearly what was happening. Obviously we were in their country with Covid [restrictions] and we were given areas that we were allowed in. I didn't see the other horse coming down the outside and inside the final furlong I thought 'we've done it!' Then the horse came over the top and your first thought is 'ah sugar, we just got beat!' But then you're so, so proud.”

Raced by the La Pyle partnership, Pyledriver won the G1 Coronation Cup in June but was forced to miss the rest of the summer with a setback. He returned a winner in Lingfield's Listed Churchill S. on Nov. 13 prior to his Hong Kong sojourn.

“We were absolutely delighted and very proud, we have been from the day at Salisbury [his debut] because he never, ever lets you down,” Muir said.

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HKJC’s Engelbrecht-Bresges Calls 2021 Hong Kong International Races ‘A Tremendous Sporting Success’

The Hong Kong Jockey Club's Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges has saluted Hong Kong's “can-do” spirit and commitment after another successful staging of the LONGINES Hong Kong International Races, which saw Group 1 glory shared between Japan and Hong Kong at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong, Sunday, Dec. 12.

On a day when Golden Sixty charged into Hong Kong racing history with a record 19th win in the jurisdiction with a triumphant defense of his LONGINES Hong Kong Mile crown, Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges pointed to Hong Kong's ability to compete with racing super-powers with much larger horse populations.

“Hong Kong has a horse population of 1,350 horses and we hold our own against the best in the world, we compete successfully against countries with a horse population of 8,000 or 14,000,” Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges said. “It is something Hong Kong can be very proud of.

“Golden Sixty is an incredible horse and he again showed today what a phenomenal horse he is. Francis Lui and Vincent Ho have done an incredible job and now he has bettered the record he shared with Beauty Generation and Silent Witness.”

Golden Sixty eclipsed world-class opposition to provide Hong Kong with pride and joy, Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges said.

Caspar Fownes and Blake Shinn combined with Sky Field to win the LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint, while Japan struck twice through Glory Vase (LONGINES Hong Kong Vase) and Loves Only You (LONGINES Hong Kong Cup).

The pair had previously prevailed at the HKIR.

“Today is a day which had tremendous sporting success and this is something everybody in the Club should be proud of,” Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges said. “There are people you do not see who make a big commitment to the Club and to this event.

“I am extremely grateful for their contributions and I commend them for their dedication.

“I also thank the Government for trusting us to stage LONGINES HKIR in such trying circumstances. The closed-loop racing bubble has worked extremely well.

“As wonderful as the racing was today, we also had the unfortunate and tragic circumstances in the LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint, where there was an accident. Our thoughts are with the injured jockeys and we wish Zac Purton, Lyle Hewitson, and Yuichi Fukunaga a speedy recovery. Nobody likes to see these accidents and the owners of the horses involved are also in our thoughts.”

“If this incident did not happen, it would probably have been one of the greatest achievements of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, to pull something like this off. Sometimes you have setbacks and you have to overcome challenges, which we have always proven to do.

“My thanks go to all the trainers and jockeys, especially from overseas, who have gone through tremendous sacrifices. I want to apologize to the owners because when your horse runs you want to see it but they still supported us, which shows that we have that trust. For us, it is extremely important that we stage this event because, if we had not staged it, you lose your spot in the world scene. We are extremely proud that we have achieved this but there is definitely sadness which over-runs everything.”

Turnover for the meeting was a record HK$1.728 billion.

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Glory Vase Wins Second Hong Kong Vase At Sha Tin

Champion jockey Joao Moreira combined with the Tomohito Ozeki-trained Japanese stayer Glory Vase for a stunning win in the Group 1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m) at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong Sunday.

It was a repeat of their 2019 success but achieved in different style as Moreira registered his seventh Hong Kong International win and his third in the Vase having also been successful on the Japanese-trained Satono Crown in 2016.

Glory Vase unleashed a withering burst from second last turning for home, in contrast to the handier stalking passage he enjoyed in 2019, to deny fairytale results for the trainers of the placegetters. Briton William Muir with his Hong Kong debut runner in second-placed Pyledriver and Frenchman Alain de Royer-Dupre – twice a HKIR winner – who prepared third place Ebaiyra, who'll be his final Hong Kong runner as the trainer retires at the end of the year.

Local challenger Reliable Team led, as expected, but was exposed early to significant pressure from Stay Foolish, the one other Japanese-trained runner, with Martin Dwyer – who won the Vase in 2004 – ensuring that Pyledriver enjoyed the slipstream run behind the pacemakers and the Muir-trained stayer looked the likely winner on straightening but could not hold out the indefatigable Glory Vase.

Dwyer was delighted with the performance of his mount but conceded, which was apparent for all to see, that the winner was simply too good.

“Really pleased, good run but I think the winner is very good,” Dwyer said.

Moreira, meanwhile, was understandably upbeat about the winner whom he described as his “best chance” in the International Races in the preamble to the meeting.

“No doubts about it, I did enjoy it so much,” Moreira said, “this win and everything in my life is to the honor of Jesus Christ, who has been in my life always and today has been a very good example.

“I felt Him with me and everything went as I expected. I had a smooth run, going to the fence and saving ground. I just made sure I got into the clear and I know he's a very strong horse at the finish and there was not a fight.

“He has proven to be the best horse today.”

Christophe Soumillon, who rode minor placegetter Ebaiyra, said the French filly performed creditably. “She ran well, she was a bit keen in the first part of the race. When we came to the last turn, I thought she would probably fight for the win but the last 200 (meters), she got tired.”

Last year's winner Mogul conceded meekly in the home straight after being poised to challenge coming to the home turn and jockey Ryan Moore said he was “disappointing”.

Glory Vase won by one length from Pyledriver with Ebaiyra a further two and a half lengths back in third. Glory Vase was competing in Hong Kong for the second time this year having finished second to Loves Only You in the G1 FWD Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2000m) in April.

Hong Kong racing continues this Wednesday, December 15, at Happy Valley.

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