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Golden Sixty Becomes Hong Kong’s Winningest Horse With HK Mile Victory

Golden Sixty stands alone as Hong Kong's most prolific winner in history after he successfully defended his Group 1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile (1600m) crown at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong Dec. 12.

Nailing yet another heart-stopping win under jockey Vincent Ho, Hong Kong's champion savored the 19th win of his career to set a new record in town, surpassing the previous mantle of 18 he shared with Silent Witness and Beauty Generation, dating back to when the professional era of Hong Kong racing commenced in 1971.

Smashing a fine field of 10 others from Japan, Ireland, and Hong Kong including this year's G1 Yasuda Kinen (1600m) winner Danon Kingly, Golden Sixty enhanced his earnings to a mouth-watering HK$95.453 million with victory, just HK$10.78 million shy of the record mark in Hong Kong set by Beauty Generation (HK$106.233 million).

Racing in the silks of Stanley Chan Ka-Leung and trained by Francis Lui, Golden Sixty – 'The Pride of Hong Kong' – delivered a performance worthy of status as the world's best miler.

“I feel very happy, he's my champion, and I have to say thank you to my team and Vincent (Ho) and the owner – they support me,” Lui said.

Extending his winning sequence to 16, Ho dropped the Medaglia d'Oro gelding back to the second half of the field on the fence; in the straight, Ho weaved for an out, eventually taking a split at the 300m mark before his sparkling dash carried him to a one and three-quarter length victory in a time of 1:33.86.

“I knew he was at his best, gate two was a little bit tricky, I didn't want to be stuck on the inside but eventually the race panned out well and the pace was genuine,” Ho said.

More Than This filled the second spot while Salios and Mother Earth grabbed third and fourth, respectively.

“It was much better today because the pace was on, he actually relaxed very well, and as a 6-year-old, he's more mature, so it's even better,” Ho said.

The success is the second at the LONGINES Hong Kong International Races for both Francis Lui and Vincent Ho, while today's performance sees Golden Sixty remain unbeaten since September 2019.

“It's all about teamwork as well, without anyone from the stable we couldn't do this,” Ho said.

A six-year-old – Golden Sixty – boasts eight wins over 1200m and 1400m, while twice he has stepped up to 2000m successfully, claiming the 2020 BMW Hong Kong Derby and 2021 G1 Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup.

“He's such an aggressive horse so he doesn't mind going through horses,” Ho said of the gelding's tenacity.

Sunday, Ho savored the win in front of an adoring crowd, which throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been absent at times or in a smaller capacity.

“Last year, it wasn't like this, I got to enjoy it with the crowd and it's such a great atmosphere, I just hope the other guys are ok, it's hard to enjoy it completely,” Ho said, also reflecting on the mishap that occurred earlier in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m).

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

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Hong Kong Superstar Golden Sixty Eyeing New Record Ahead Of International Challenge

Golden Sixty impressed trainer Francis Lui with a strong hit out on the turf Tuesday morning at Sha Tin as he prepares for the chance to create history in Sunday's (Dec. 12) HK$26 million (about US$3.3 million) G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile.

The brilliant son of Medaglia d'Oro will aim to defend his LONGINES Hong Kong Mile crown this weekend, in what will be his toughest to date as he eyes an extension to his winning sequence of 16 by capturing his 19th career win in Hong Kong – a local record.

After watching Hong Kong's champion clock 1:18.2 (27.9, 28.0, 22.3) over six furlongs alongside a partner horse (Valiant Dream), Lui declared: “He's good – Vincent (Ho) was happy with him – he's ready.”

Sharing the current mantle of 18 wins with Silent Witness and Beauty Generation, Golden Sixty will aim to enter unknown territory and stand unrivalled with victory at this weekend's LONGINES Hong Kong International Races.

“I just asked Vincent to roll him into it, let him work into it and he did it with a partner horse,” Lui said. “He will gallop again on Friday (Dec. 10) and it'll just be similar again.”

Standing in Golden Sixty's way this weekend is the might of Japan – a quartet from the Land of the Rising Sun spearheaded by Danon Kingly – this year's G1 Yasuda Kinen (1600m, one mile) winner.

Joining him is Salios – a two-time runner-up to the exceptional Contrail (Japan's eighth Triple Crown winner), Indy Champ – a two-time G1 winner as well as Vin de Garde who placed at the top-level behind Lord North in Dubai earlier this year.

Aidan O'Brien has the sole representative with his dual G1-winning 3-year-old filly, Mother Earth, while five others from Hong Kong feature: Waikuku, More Than This, Sky Darci, Excellent Proposal and Lucky Express.

Yesterday (Monday, Dec. 6) at Sha Tin, Golden Sixty – in an unusual turn of events – bit Vincent Ho on the hand, his regular rider.

“I asked him what happened, normally he always goes in the box after the gallop with the horse to communicate with him and he just sat outside the box and Golden Sixty maybe wanted to play with him and he just had a bite,” Lui said.

“Normally he's a good horse, they have their own character, and he has his,” he added.

Usually displaying flare on the track, Golden Sixty's incredible career has encompassed earnings of HK$80.633 million (about US$10.33 million), 18 wins from 19 starts, four G1 wins, 2020 BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m, 1 1/4 miles) glory, a trio of G2 triumphs and two G3s.

“I liked his last run it was good to see – I hope he can carry on and that we can get more and more good horses to train,” Lui said.

The reigning Hong Kong Horse of the Year's winning margins are rarely big with his customary last-minute dash on show week in, week out.

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Loves Only You: History Made And In The Making

No matter where she finishes in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m, or 1 1/4 miles), those watching will be witnessing both history in the making and a history maker, Japan's champion mare with an endearingly fetching name – Loves Only You.

The LONGINES Hong Kong Cup will be the final race for Loves Only You, capping a short, star-studded, and decidedly international career, which has seen the now 5-year-old daughter of Deep Impact land one of the most elusive overseas wins for Japan – its first Breeders' Cup victory, while her FWD QEII Cup (2000m, 1 1/4 miles) triumph at Sha Tin earlier this year came at her first Hong Kong sortie.

Debuting in late 2018, Loves Only You pocketed her first G1 the next year in the fourth start of her career, with a win of the classic Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks, 2400m, 1 1/2 miles).

And she did it unbeaten.

She'd been the race favorite from her career second start through her run in Japan's G1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2200m, 1 3/8 miles) in the autumn, when Loves Only You failed for the first time to meet expectations. It was still a far-from-shabby third behind older females, as she finished 0.2 seconds off winner Lucky Lilac who, the following month, finished second in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m, 1 1/2 miles).

Six months passed without a race, after which Loves Only You was given five starts for 2020, none of them wins and three out of the frame. They ran the gamut from understandable to forgivable to downright inexcusable.

On paper alone, it looked like the filly's career was on the rocks. But, key to her inability to show her form, incredible spring and a nimbleness that assistant trainer Kazunari Yoshida likens to a cat, was to be found in those six months at the beginning of 2020. That key was the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, or more specifically, the wrench it threw into racing.

When it was announced in late March 2020 that the Dubai World Cup meeting would be cancelled after all, 20 horses from Japan – its biggest team yet and Loves Only You among them – were already on site and had to return to Japan without racing.

The stress of quarantine, travel, and strange surroundings apparently took its toll on Loves Only You. It wasn't until Japan's Queen Elizabeth II Cup that year that the then 4-year-old started to look like her old self, finishing in third place for the second year in a row, this time only 0.1 seconds behind repeat winner Lucky Lilac.

But at year-end, her 10th-place finish nearly a full second behind the winner in the G1 Arima Kinen seemed to bode poorly for the future. The distance of 2500m was her longest assignment yet and barrier four had seemed advantageous. But Mirco Demuro blamed her loss on the trip.

“The inside ground was torn up and I'd wanted to travel about 4 widths off the rail, but there was too much pressure on the outside and I couldn't find a way out,” he said.

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The start of 2021 brought a new rider and new hope. Most importantly, it brought fantastic results. Loves Only You has yet to figure out of the top three in her five starts this year, all graded stakes, three of them top level. And, despite the continuing pandemic, Loves Only You has done more flying than most humans.

She started with a win of the G2 Kyoto Kinen (2200m, 1 3/8 miles) at Hanshin in February under Yuga Kawada, and the next month flew off to Dubai, this time finishing third G1 in the Dubai Sheema Classic (2410m, about 1 1/2 miles) under Oisin Murphy. In April, she debuted in Hong Kong and, with Vincent Ho up, led a Japanese 1-2-3-4 over the finish line of the G1 FWD QEII Cup (2000m, 1 1/4 miles).

“In one word, 'strong', is what she was,” said 60-year-old Yoshito Yahagi, currently only two wins from the top of Japan's trainers' championship. “She lost a shoe going into the first turn and, yet, was able to show the kind of speed she did in the stretch.

“Having kept her condition while training alone in Dubai before going to Hong Kong was quite an achievement. I think it shows how tough she is mentally.”

Ho agreed she was top notch.

“She was extremely calm and professional. She held on very strongly and won impressively,” he said.

Back home, after four months off, Loves Only You was given her first start for the campaign in the G2 Sapporo Kinen (2000m, 1 1/4 miles). She finished second, less than a length behind dual G1 winner Sodashi and, more importantly, was able to show her prowess over the specific grass unique to the Hokkaido tracks. And that was part of the plan.

The venue for this year's Breeders' Cup venue was of special interest to Yahagi.

“It is at Del Mar on the west coast, close to Japan. And, the turf at Sapporo is similar to the turf at Del Mar and I believe California turf will suit Japan horses,” he predicted leaving for the Breeders' Cup.

On Oct. 22, when Loves Only You departed Japan with stablemate Marche Lorrainel, Yahagi noted: “I think with two horses, it will make conditions very favorable. I think we have the best chances of success of any so far.”

The rest is history. Both horses won their respective races, Loves Only You with a gutsy, spine-tingling finish in the G1 Filly & Mare Turf (2200m, 1 3/8 miles) and Marche Lorraine in the Distaff, giving Japan not only its first long-coveted Breeders' Cup victory after 25 years of trying, but two wins for good measure.

“There's no words for how overjoyed I am,” Yahagi said post-race. “There were some difficult places, and I must admit I thought she wasn't going to make it.

“It was a very exciting race. There's nothing better than to be able to send that exciting news back home to Japan.

“I have nothing but gratitude for Loves Only You and wish to say to her, 'Thank you for bringing me here.' She is to me like a most-beloved daughter.”

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Reigning Horse Of The Year Golden Sixty Extends Win Streak To 15 In Hong Kong

Golden Sixty's rehearsal for next month's G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile went according to plan on Sunday, Nov. 21 at Sha Tin as he brushed aside six rivals to claim the G2 BOCHK Private Wealth Jockey Club Mile.

Looking to defend his Hong Kong Mile crown at the 2021 LONGINES Hong Kong International Races on Dec. 12, the reigning Hong Kong Horse of the Year extended his winning streak to 15 with a sublime last-to-first effort under jockey Vincent Ho.

Last defeated in July of 2019, the brilliant son of Medaglia d'Oro looked in fine fettle as he launched from his customary position to score by a length, clocking 1m 34.55s ahead of the dual G1-winning Waikuku and last season's BMW Hong Kong Derby hero Sky Darci, respectively.

Justifying 1.1 favoritism to win, Ho was pleased with his mount's first-up performance following three trials in preparation for his seasonal return today.

“He definitely wasn't at his best today and we're still building him up. After this race he should be pretty close to his top form,” Ho said. “We'll see how he pulls up and do some recovery work on him and get him ready for the Internationals.”

Sizzling late, the 6-year-old registered a slick 21.51s over the final 400m, the only horse in the contest to do so.

Today's triumph takes Golden Sixty to a record-equaling 18 career wins in Hong Kong, alongside only Beauty Generation and Silent Witness, while his sequence of 15 successive victories has him just two shy of Silent Witness' record-setting 17 in a row.

“It was a nice run, I think we both enjoyed that. It was the perfect draw on the outside with no speed in the race.

“They tried to pick up at the 600 (metre mark), bring the speed up, and that was good for us. He relaxed very well behind and just trucked through, saved some ground until the straight and he was able to cruise up easily and as usual, he did his job.

“He saw the winning post and he was sort of already 'job done' and he tried to slow down but I said 'just give me two extra strides, please',” Ho said.

Rated 131, Golden Sixty collected four mantles at last season's Champion Awards, named Horse of the Year, Champion Miler, Champion Middle-Distance Horse and Most Popular Horse.

“There were no concerns (of a slow pace harming his chances) because his sprint home as a miler can be 21-something [seconds] so in this field it was difficult for them to actually sprint with me,” Ho said.

“I knew he was going to be fresh, last season we started at 1400 (metres) and I knew the pace was going to be faster than today. First-up over 1600 (metres) when he's fresh and surely there's no pace, it's better to be slow but we know if I'm just at the back and nothing fires him up, he can relax very well and I can just wait to press the button,” Ho explained.

Trainer Francis Lui was equally as pleased with his star galloper's effort, whose victory today enhanced his all-time earnings to HK$80.633 million.

“I must say we were confident in this race but I'm happy to see him win again. This horse has got a very good fighting heart and once he relaxes he has a very good turn of foot,” Lui said.

Golden Sixty capped a G2 running double for Lui who earlier landed the BOCHK Private Banking Jockey Club Sprint (1200m) with Lucky Patch.

“Golden Sixty's morning trackwork has been quite impressive, he's more mature than last season. I discussed it with Vincent (Ho) and he seemed happy with the training and how he was behaving at trackwork,” Lui said.

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