Time Warp stole the Group 1 Hong Kong Cup over 2,000 meters on Dec. 10 at Sha Tin Racecourse, setting an early and middle pace so slow that no rival could come close to him when he turned on the jets in the final 600 meters. Time Warp won the Group 1, $1.278 Hong Kong Gold Cup over 2,000 meters on Sunday at Sha Tin leading all the way once again, but there was nothing like a theft this time. Time Warp and jockey Zac Purton turned the Gold Cup into an American-style dirt race, setting blistering internal fractions, then outlasting chasing rivals who had worked too hard just catching up to finish off the pacesetter. Time Warp ran very fast, his course-record clocking of 1:59.97 the first sub-2:00 time for 2,000 meters ever recorded at Sha Tin. “We’ve been racing here for a long time now, and there’s been a lot of good horses grace this track, so it’s a credit to the horse,” Purton said. Werther, who got a good trip and poked a head in front in upper stretch, finished second, beaten a half-length. His trainer, John Moore, said his horse had bled during the running (race-day Lasix isn’t permitted in Hong Kong). Seasons Bloom was another half-length back in third, with Pakistan Star a neck farther behind, finishing fourth in a commendable comeback run as the top four finishers separated themselves from the rest of the field. Time Warp, trained by Tony Cruz, broke alertly from post 7, crossed toward the inside, and cleared the field to lead just after a short run to the first of two turns. His first 400 meters went in 25.68, 0.32 seconds faster than par for 2,000-meter Group races at Sha Tin, but with Helene Charisma forcing the action outside him, Time Warp really started rolling down the backstretch. He went his second 400 meters in 23.35 and his third in 23.39, combining for an 800-meter internal fraction about 2 1/2 seconds faster than the class and distance par. Time Warp’s fourth 400, 23.32, still was faster than par, and though his closing 400-meter split, 24.23, was considerably slower than standard, Time Warp already had badly damaged his rivals’ chances. Pakistan Star, who broke poorly, had chased the pace from fourth and ran out of gas with 400 meters left while racing for the first time since last summer. Werther sat a garden trip in fifth down the backstretch and appeared to be traveling like a winner, but he went so fast his third and fourth 400 meters while being put into a contending position that he, too, was cooked the final furlong. Seasons Bloom came from several lengths behind Werther, and after running two 22-and-change 400-meter splits even before reaching the head of the homestretch, it was no wonder he also flattened out. Time Warp’s performance showed the potency of route speed regularly seen in America but at a jurisdiction where races often are won by the fastest finisher. The 5-year-old son of Archipenko and the Stormy Atlantic mare Here to Eternity ran poorly in a pair of Sha Tin dirt tries last Hong Kong season, although those races came before his connections began simply letting their horse go to the front. Cruz had said after the Hong Kong Cup win in December that Time Warp would be considered for a trip to Dubai this spring but reported following Sunday’s race that Time Warp would stay in Hong Kong and start April 29 in the QE II Cup. Cruz also trains Pakistan Star, who, other than his poor break, showed none of the radical eccentricities that had gotten him banned from Hong Kong racing for several months. Pakistan Star should have benefited from Sunday’s race and figures to be a main rival to his stablemate as winter turns to spring. Beauty Generation back on top in Silver Jubilee Bouncing back from a seventh-place finish a month ago in the Group 1 Stewards Cup, Beauty Generation won the co-featured Group 1, $1.278 million Queen’s Silver Jubilee by a head over Beat the Clock on Sunday at Sha Tin. Beauty Generation had wired the Group 1 Hong Kong Mile on Dec. 10 but, after breaking from post 13 in the Stewards Cup, had turned in a below-par performance. He was back on his game Sunday, although Beat the Clock looked like the winner of this 1,400-meter sprint with 150 meters left to race. Beauty Generation, who gave jockey Zac Purton a Group 1 double Sunday, pressed two wide as Peniaphobia set a strong pace, taking over the lead after turning for home. Beat the Clock, getting an ideal stalking run from the rail under Joao Moreira, slipped outside Peniaphobia and inside Beauty Generation at the 400-meter mark, crept up on the leader with a furlong left to run, and put at least a full head in front of Beauty Generation before the 100-meter marker. But either Beat the Clock lost his focus or Beauty Generation found renewed energy, for he jumped back in front with 50 meters left and scored a narrow victory. Beauty Generation, a 5-year-old New Zealand-bred gelding by Road to Rock, clocked a strong 1:20.86 over good ground. Fifty Fifty was slightly less than one length farther back in third and well clear of fourth-place Giant Treasure. Beauty Generation has made great strides over the last year and has thrived since trainer John Moore, who won his seventh Queen’s Silver Jubilee, decided to remake his charge a miler type for the 2017-18 Hong Kong season. Beauty Generation’s next major goal is likely the Champions Mile on April 29 at Sha Tin. :: Hong Kong: Free PPs, picks, and analysis