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Zac Purton Claims International Jockeys’ Championship; Hollie Doyle First Woman To Win IJC Race

Zac Purton has claimed ultimate honors in the HK$800,000 (US$103,200) LONGINES International Jockeys' Championship on Wednesday at Happy Valley after clinching a tense contest from Joao Moreira in a dramatic finale to the four-race series.

Tied with Moreira on 18 points heading into the deciding race of the contest, Purton collected an invaluable two after dead-heating for third aboard Flying Bonus with Wind N Grass (Tom Marquand).

Moreira, who needed to finish ahead of Purton in the championship-deciding contest to add another accolade to his bulging collection, crossed the line in sixth place on Cue The Music, failing to improve his score.

On a landmark evening when Hollie Doyle became the first woman in history to win a leg of the of International Jockeys' Championship on David Hayes' Harmony N Blessed, Purton totaled 20 points under the 12-6-4 point format to deny Moreira (18).

Doyle and Alexis Badel were tied for third with 12 points each after Badel's victory on Gallant Crown.

Hong Kong's reigning champion jockey, Purton posted a treble at the meeting while also earning HK$500,000 (about US$65,000) – the richest prize in racing for competition of this type – as LONGINES IJC champion.

Tony Millard pocketed the HK$200,000 (US$25,800) bonus as the most successful trainer of the series after notching a double with Gallant Crown and Gift Of Lifeline in the third leg, who was ridden by Purton in the pair's first successful collaboration since 2015.

Now a two-time champion after success in 2017, Purton was elated with the timely success ahead of the prestige LONGINES Hong Kong International Races at Sha Tin on Sunday, Dec. 13.

“In a competition like this when there's so much on the line, it certainly feels nice to have won it again, it's another moment that I'll cherish,” he said.

“I didn't start off too well but we built into it after that. Like I've been saying for quite some time now, barriers win races and unfortunately for me it seems have been going on for months.

“I've been drawing such bad barriers, every meeting, it's making so difficult to be competitive.

“Then I come here tonight and, as I said, they weren't the best rides in the race but the barriers gave them the chance to be competitive. I just needed a bit of luck and things went my way.”

Moreira set the early tone with a measured ride on Gouten Of Garo in the opening race of the contest, logging maximum points in the Class 4 contest for trainer David Ferraris.

“This horse actually surprised all of us,” Moreira said. “On paper, he didn't look like he was much of a chance.

“But David has done his job very well and he sent his horse out in great shape and he just delivered what he has got best.

“Up in class, we were not that confident. But I am pleased to be wrong.”

Badel was chuffed to land the second leg for Millard with Gallant Crown, who staved off Fearless Fire (Purton) and Maldives (Pierre-Charles Boudot).

“I'm glad to win for him (Millard), he's been a great supporter so far all this season and I'm glad he had such an important win tonight,” said the Frenchman, who is relishing his third stint based in Hong Kong.

“He (Gallant Crown) is a very good horse to pick up, he showed 1650 (meters) was perfect for him.”

Purton thrust his way into contention with a clinical display on Gift Of Lifeline in the third leg, prevailing in his first ride for Millard since June of 2017.

Moreira claimed a vital six points by finishing second on Smiling City for a share of the lead ahead of the finale as defending champion Karis Teetan earned four points with third placing on Helene Wisdom Star.

Hollie Doyle drives Harmony N Blessed to victory in the final leg of the IJC.

Doyle, only the third woman to contest the International Jockeys' Championship after Emma-Jayne Wilson (2007) and Chantal Sutherland (2009), delivered strongly supported Harmony N Blessed – but much of the focus was on the action behind her as Purton and Moreira dueled to the line.

“It's amazing,” Doyle said. “It's just great to be here and it's the icing on the cake.

“He's a very, big strong horse. I think he's got a good future ahead of him.”

The 12 jockeys involved in the contest – six from Hong Kong and six from Great Britain and Europe – all praised the Hong Kong Jockey Club's balanced ride allocation.

The system was devised by Australian expert form analyst Dominic Beirne.

“There have been a lot of good story lines out of tonight and I think the new system gave a lot of jockeys in the room a bit of confidence,” Purton said. “I could feel the enthusiasm in the room and everyone was keen to go out there and give themselves a chance.

“Hollie winning a race was another highlight and Tony winning the trainers' bonus and me being able to seal it for him. Hopefully we broke ice there and we can put our long run of outs behind us and just get on with business.”

On a glorious evening for Purton, he posted his 1200th win in Hong Kong after saluting on Run The Table in the Class 5 Australia Handicap and Speedy Optimist in the Class 5 Brazil Handicap, although he had to share honors in the latter after a dead-heat with Frenchman Alexis Badel aboard Great Harvest.

Purton is only the second jockey to reach the 1200-win milestone in Hong Kong. Record-holder Douglas Whyte (1813) is the other.

A four-time winner of the Hong Kong jockeys' championship, Purton rode his first winner in the jurisdiction in 2007.

Racing continues on Sunday with the glittering LONGINES Hong Kong International Races at Sha Tin.

The post Zac Purton Claims International Jockeys’ Championship; Hollie Doyle First Woman To Win IJC Race appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Ryan Moore: Hong Kong Cup Favorite Magical ‘Has Been Great For A Long Time’

Champion British jockey Ryan Moore believes Magical is primed to forge rare new territory for Aidan O'Brien in the HK$28 million (US$3.61 million) G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m, 1 1/4 miles) when the Irish globe-trotter vies for an eighth Grade 1 victory.

Magical currently shares top billing at Ballydoyle for the most wins at the highest level, occupying a cluttered mantle along with dual LONGINES Hong Kong Vase winner Highland Reel, Ascot Gold Cup champion Yeats, Minding, and Rock Of Gibraltar.

Moore, 37, is familiar with the jaw-dropping feats of O'Brien's equine giants and, with history beckoning at Sha Tin on Sunday, Dec. 13, is confident Magical can again live up to her name.

“She's been great for a long time and it's fantastic that she's here. She's won seven G1s,” he said. “The reality is they probably have her to beat, but again you always respect the horses that are in there.

“There's three smart Japanese horses in there that have all won G1s (Danon Premium, Win Bright and Normcore).

“And Furore is in good shape. It's a small field but there's not a bad one in there, I don't think.”

The Hong Kong Cup features no fewer than six individual G1 winners.

With the return of defending champion Win Bright for trainer Yoshihiro Hatakeyama and jockey Masami Matsuoka, Moore is using a ready form reference through recently retired Magic Wand, who finished second to Win Bright in the 2019 Hong Kong Cup.

“Magic Wand was a super mare but Magical would, you would think, beat her,” Moore said.

(Magical is) a slight step up on her. She would bring stronger form than Magic Wand would have done.”

Moore will also ride Mogul in the HK$20 million G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m, 1 1/2 miles), where O'Brien's charge will contend with six class rivals.

The striking colt has drawn plenty of admiring glances during trackwork at Sha Tin and Moore hopes the three-year-old can perform to his looks on Sunday.

“He's a beautiful horse, we've always held him high regard,” he said. “He took a while to come to hand this year but you'll see him out on the track – he's very well-made, a very strong colt.

“He was very impressive when he won the Grand Prix de Paris (2400m) (on) Arc Trials weekend and, at the Breeders Cup, he wasn't beaten far in what was a messy sort of a race (when a three-length fifth behind Tarnawa).

“Obviously there's only seven in there (the Vase), Exultant always runs his race but he (Mogul) would look to have a solid chance in that race.”

Moore will seek to add to his tally of five LONGINES Hong Kong International Races credits with Danon Smash, who finished eighth in last year's G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m, six furlongs), beaten only 2.5 lengths.

A dual G2 and four-time G3 winner, Danon Smash will bid to provide Japanese trainer Takayuki Yasuda his third victory in the race.

Yasuda savored consecutive triumphs with Danon Smash's sire Lord Kanaloa in 2012 and '13.

Pitted against Classique Legend and a slew of emerging Hong Kong speedsters, Moore is hoping Danon Smash can successfully contend after a leisurely gallop on turf at Sha Tin on Wednesday, Dec. 9.

“It was nothing strenuous but he's been here before and it was just getting a feel of him today,” Moore said. “He seems well. He's got plenty of form in the book and it's always hard to beat the Hong Kong horses in the Sprint.

“Obviously this year, Classique Legend looked exceptional in Australia. As always, it's a tough race and we probably have to step up a little bit but hopefully he can get a good run and perform well.”

Moore has prevailed on five occasions at the LONGINES Hong Kong International Races – twice in the Vase with globetrotting Highland Reel in 2015 and 2017, the Cup with Snow Fairy (2010) and Maurice (2016) and the Mile with Maurice (2015).

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‘Everything Looks Perfect’ For O’Brien Trio Ahead Of Sunday’s Hong Kong International Races

Aidan O'Brien is satisfied with reports out of Sha Tin as his stable's travelling trio Magical, Order Of Australia and Mogul wind up for Sunday's (Dec. 13) HK$95 million (US$12.25 million) LONGINES Hong Kong International Races, but believes the task of winning will be as tough as ever.

“We don't expect it to be easy. Those races in Hong Kong are absolutely world class standard,” O'Brien said by telephone from his Ballydoyle base. “The horses just did a canter (on Tuesday) and the lads seem happy with them at the moment.”

The master trainer has – as is usual, even in non-pandemic days – entrusted on-the-ground preparations to loyal lieutenant Pat Keating and his small team of experienced travelling staff. Unable to jet in for the big races this year due to Covid-19 travel restrictions, O'Brien will mastermind maneuvers from County Tipperary, hopeful that his contenders will add to his famous stable's two previous Sha Tin glories, achieved when Highland Reel took the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase in 2015 and 2017.

Magical, with three of her seven G1 wins accrued this year, is the event's international bill-topper, while Mogul brings with him a big home reputation and a G1 success in the Grand Prix de Paris; Order Of Australia shocked America and beyond last time out with a long-odds upset in the G1 Breeders' Cup Mile and presents as a fascinating rival to Hong Kong's old and new star milers, Beauty Generation and Golden Sixty.

“It's a tough place to win, which is good for competitive racing,” O'Brien said. “Unless you go there with good horses, it's very hard to win.”

Magical has enjoyed another profitable year in her stellar career and would become O'Brien's most prolific G1 winner should she collect her eighth top-flight victory in the HK$28 million (US$3.61 million) LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m, about 1 1/4 miles).

The five-year-old has earned her status as one of the sport's finest race mares, her talent and her character having combined to produce an athlete capable of competing at the top level in 20 of her 27 career races, with wins achieved at home in Ireland and in Britain, and fine efforts in defeat in France and the USA, notably when a close second to Enable in the 2018 Breeders' Cup Turf.

“Magical has travelled plenty and she likes travelling, and Pat has been happy with her since she arrived there. Everything looks perfect at the moment,” O'Brien said.

“She's a relaxed filly with a good mind and she's raced all the way from seven furlongs to a mile and a half. She's a mature adult now and she's very easy to handle, very straightforward and very genuine.”

The Galileo mare started her 2020 campaign with rolling wins in the G1 Pretty Polly Stakes and G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup before running a gutsy second to the world's current top-rated galloper Ghaiyyath in the G1 Juddmonte International Stakes. But Magical avenged that reversal in style at her next outing when snaring her second G1 Irish Champion Stakes, having raced at her rival's quarters, exerting pressure throughout and then quickening on by; her latest two efforts saw her place third in the G1 QIPCO Champion Stakes at Ascot and second again in the G1 Breeders' Cup Turf at Keeneland.

Magical faces a typically difficult assignment this weekend and will need to see off last year's victor Win Bright and his fellow Japanese raiders Danon Premium and Normcore, as well as Hong Kong's revitalized 2019 BMW Hong Kong Derby hero Furore. And then there is Time Warp, the Cup victor in 2017, whose front-running style is likely to determine the shape of the race.

“She'll be very happy if there's a good pace on: that would suit her,” O'Brien said.

A sound tempo was lacking when Magical failed to defend her Champion Stakes crown two starts back, and again last month in Kentucky when touched off behind Tarnawa over two furlongs further at the Breeders' Cup.

“She just likes a high tempo really and that's what catches her sometimes over a mile and a half, the tempo's not strong, like the last time. The time before that it was a mile and a quarter but it was the same thing, slow tempo early; she likes to be at a high tempo to be seen at her best,” her trainer added.

Few people if any outside of Ballydoyle would have seen Order Of Australia as a G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile candidate before his shock win in the G1 Breeders' Cup Mile last time out.

“The plan we had was the Breeders' Cup Mile but we weren't sure if we were going to get in,” O'Brien said. “We weren't going to, so he was going to run in a nine-furlong race out there the day before and we always had in our heads that if he got in and ran a big race, we would see if he would get invited to Hong Kong because the two races we thought would suit him were the Breeders' Cup Mile and the Hong Kong Mile. Both are flat tracks with nice ground.”

The 3-year-old only just made the Breeders' Cup Mile cut at Keeneland, having gone there with the profile of a middle-distance galloper. The colt won at a mile and a half two starts prior with his only race at a distance as short as a mile being his career debut one year earlier when fifth. But, while the colt is by a Derby winner, his half-sister Iridessa – also by a Derby winner – not only won the G1 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at a mile and a quarter, but also the G1 Matron Stakes and G1 Fillies' Mile, both over a mile.

“We always had it in our heads that he could be a miler but he's by Australia so we started him as a Derby-type horse and he ran very well when fourth in the Irish Derby, then we went back to a mile and a quarter and he ran very well in a French Derby, so it was always possible that we were going to go back in distance but with the season that we had, it looked like we were going to run out of time,” O'Brien explained.

“We gave him a break after the French Derby and it was a bit of a rush to get him fit again. We had to go to Dundalk over a mile and a quarter and he won there, and then he went to The Curragh and the ground got very bad, we ran him and we shouldn't have – that was a mile and a quarter. It became obvious that day that the trip wasn't for him: he travelled well but just didn't get home at all.”

Order Of Australia will face Japan's defending champion Admire Mars in the HK$25 million (US$3.22 million) contest, as well as Hong Kong's great new hope, Golden Sixty. But a reproduction of his Breeders' Cup win would put him right in the mix; on that occasion, the bay overcame a wide gate, showed smart early pace and raced eagerly in fourth before quickening and driving homeward to a neck success over stablemate Circus Maximus.

“In the Breeders' Cup he looked like a horse you could shorten up a little bit more because he travelled strongly through the race,” O'Brien said. “He had a terrible draw, especially the way the races were run out there – he was as wide as you could possibly be on a tight track over a mile. It was a massive effort for him to do what he did. To get a position from where he was drawn, Pierre-Charles (Boudot) did brilliantly. We were over the moon with the run.

“Often, horses win and everything was in their favor but it wasn't in his favor, given where he was drawn and things, and he still won. We've been happy with him since and we're looking forward to seeing him running again.”

Order Of Australia has worn blinkers in every race this season but has shown no shortage of resolution in his races, even when stretching his reserves over a mile and a half.

“He's always worn the blinkers because he was lazy and we had them on him just to keep him concentrated,” O'Brien said. “But, looking at him in the Breeders' Cup Mile, you wouldn't say that he really needed them because he travelled very strongly through the race. Obviously, after doing that, we were afraid to leave them off, especially going into a race like this, we didn't want to change too much.”

The master of Ballydoyle knows exactly what it takes to win the HK$20 million (US$ 2.58 million) G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m, 1 1/2 miles): Highland Reel achieved the first of his two wins at the end of his 3-year-old season and O'Brien is looking for Mogul to do the same.

Like his stablemate Magical, Mogul was undone by the steady pace in the Breeders' Cup Turf last time but ran on well enough from deep to finish fifth of 10.

“He wants an even pace, he can quicken off even pace but in America it was only a dawdle, it was a mess really,” O'Brien said. “We had taken the decision that we were going to take our time on him but when you're doing that you're always at the mercy of the race. He still ran very well and we were happy with his run and we've been very happy with him since.”

The handler is hoping for something more akin to the Grand Prix de Paris (2400m) at Longchamp in September when Mogul quickened strongly under Boudot to win in a time more than five seconds quicker than standard.

“We always thought a lot more of him than he was showing in his runs until Longchamp. He's a big, powerful horse and you would be hoping the plan is to keep him in training next year as well,” he said.

“It was a good race and it was the first time we really took the decision to drop him out completely, take our time on him and ride him for pace. That's what we did and it worked very well – it was a properly-run race.”

Ryan Moore will partner Mogul and Magical on Sunday, with Boudot retaining the ride on Order Of Australia. Neither rider will partner in trackwork.

“The jockeys know them and the lads are there, Pat (Keating) and John (Manton), Dean Gallagher and Emmett McNamara and Patrick (Murphy), they're all there with them so they'll handle all that,” O'Brien said.

“It's all absolutely world class out there and it's a credit to everybody in Hong Kong, the way Hong Kong racing is run. This meeting is top of the tree, standard-wise, the way everything is done there – the track, the competition, the stewarding, the way everyone is looked after, the facilities, it's second to none really and we're always delighted to have horses good enough to go there.”

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California Memory: The Little Horse That Could…And Did

A good horse can come from anywhere, can come in all shapes and sizes. Perhaps no horse in the history of the Hong Kong turf embodies that idea more than the diminutive, but wildly talented California Memory (Highest Honor {Fr}–Kalpita, by Spinning World).

Brookdale Farm’s Fred Seitz acquired Kalpita privately after she was led out unsold on a bid of 48,000gns at Tattersalls December in 2005 and the mare foaled a grey colt Mar. 2, 2006. Hailing from the female family of champions Bosra Sham (Woodman) and Hector Protector (Woodman), the colt was consigned by Seitz’s Brookdale Sales to the 2007 Keeneland September and was off to Europe following a winning bid of $65,000. In an ironic twist, his third dam has come to include Gaudeamus (Distorted Humor), whose son Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d’Oro) is the early favorite for Sunday’s G1 Longines Hong Kong Mile.

Placed in his first two career starts in Madrid, Portus Blendium won his maiden at third asking at Dax in extreme southwestern France. He acquitted himself nicely at metropolitan tracks in early 2009, and it was a conditions victory at Chantilly that May that caught the attention of many, including Marie Yoshida.

“A good friend of mine, Francois Dupuis, contacted me and at the same time, my loyal and longtime Hong Kong client Dr. Thomas T.S. Liang was in search of a promising young racehorse. We contacted trainer Carlos Laffon-Parias, but it was only after his third-place finish in the Listed Prix Matchem that we were able to secure him.”

Ahead of Portus Blendium in the Matchem were future Godolphin star Cavalryman (GB) (Halling) and a future legend by the name of Cirrus des Aigles (Fr) (Even Top {Ire}). It would not be the final time the rivals met.

Portus Blendium made one final start in France, a third in the Listed Prix Tourgeville in August 2009, but tragedy struck a short time thereafter, as Dr. Liang passed away suddenly the following month. His final purchase was renamed California Memory by his family, who crossed their fingers that they might have a Derby runner on their hands.

Derby Dreams Dashed…

Under normal circumstances, it is tough to prepare a European import for a Classics season (for 4-year-olds in Hong Kong), but it was not straight-forward for California Memory. Having raced in France as a ridgling, he underwent gelding surgery once he got to Hong Kong, and made his local debut in February 2010, finishing 11th at long odds in the Hong Kong Classic Cup just one month prior to the Derby. It wasn’t meant to be. He returned a better horse that latter half of that season and would go on to win a pair of Class 1 handicaps, but he was no better than a 30-1 shot against the likes of veterans Irian (Ger) (Tertullian) and Viva Pataca (GB) (Marju {Ire}) in the 2011 G1 Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m). Racing for Dr. Liang’s son Howard and with homegrown rider Matt Chadwick aboard, California Memory–all 981 pounds of him–got well back, but kicked hard in the final 200 meters to cause the boilover (see below), prompting commentator Darren Flindell to anoint California Memory a champion stayer of the future. A prescient comment, indeed.

“I vividly remember receiving a phone call from Howard Liang and there was so much emotion. I could not stop smiling and crying at the same time,” recollected Yoshida. “We could feel that something very special had just happened, as if Dr. Liang was there with us.”

WATCH: California Memory announces his arrival in the 2011 Hong Kong Gold Cup

A History Maker…

California Memory won the 2011 Sha Tin Trophy H. over an insufficient 1600-meter trip off a five-month layoff with 130 pounds on his back and was fourth at odds on in the G2 Jockey Club Cup ahead of that year’s Hong Kong Cup. Forced to race handier to a slow pace while facing true international competition for the first time, he was short of room at a crucial stage, but bulled his way through to defeat Irian, with his old mate Cirrus des Aigles fifth (video).

“We were so proud that this horse could represent Hong Kong and that Matthew Chadwick, who attended the Hong Kong Jockey Club jockeys’ school, would have such success,” Yoshida said.

If anything, California Memory was in even better form heading into the internationals of 2012. Having won the Jockey Club Cup this time around, he was the 17-10 favorite on the big day and it was an easy watch for his backers, as he ran to daylight after saving ground throughout and powered home easily best to become the first–and only–two-time winner of the richest of the HKIR (see below).

“Frankly, we were hoping California Memory could do it, but we did not 100% believe he could,” Yoshida reflected. “Tony Cruz had him in peak form and it was such a big honor for Howard Liang and his family to be there and race for Hong Kong. Everything happened in slow motion that day, it was surreal. It was a celebration of Dr. Liang’s life and the family’s long-term racing accomplishment in Hong Kong. Mrs. Liang and several grandchildren were there. It was just perfect.”

California Memory made the 2013 G1 Champions and Chater Cup (2400m) the last of his 12 career victories and earned him champion stayer honors that season. He retired from racing in 2015 with earnings of $6,687,501 and lives out his days at Living Legends just outside of Melbourne, where he shares space with other HKIR winners Silent Witness (Aus), Good Ba Ba, Peniaphobia (Ire), Mr Stunning (Aus), Beauty Only (Ire) and Designs On Rome (Ire).

Japan’s Win Bright (Jpn) (Stay Gold {Jpn}) could equal California Memory’s achievement when he goes out in defense of his title in Sunday’s Hong Kong Cup.

WATCH: California Memory goes back-to-back in the Cup

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