Beat the Clock by a neck over stablemate in Sprint Cup

Beat the Clock and Mr Stunning finished first and second in the Group 2 Sprint Cup at six furlongs on turf at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong on Sunday, giving trainer John Size a deep team for the Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize on the same course April 29.

Beat the Clock (8-5) closed from the back of the field to catch 11-10 favorite Mr Stunning in the final strides, winning by a neck. Mr Stunning stalked pacesetter Peniaphobia for the first five furlongs before taking the lead in the stretch. Mr Stunning finished three-quarters of a length over Winner’s Way in a field of eight.

Ridden by leading Hong Kong rider Joao Moreira, Beat the Clock won his first stakes in the $509,619 Sprint Cup, the sixth win in 14 starts for the 4-year-old Australian-bred gelding.

Beat the Clock and Mr Stunning finished in a dead heat for second, a neck behind D B Pin, in the Group 1 Centenary Sprint Cup at Sha Tin on Jan. 28. Beat the Clock broke awkwardly in that race and raced in traffic. Beat the Clock was later second in the Group 1 Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup at seven furlongs on Feb. 25.

“He’s been a little bit unlucky,” Moreira told Hong Kong publicity on Sunday. “He’s been bumped in his races and ended up a little farther back, or he’s got a little bit lost at the end of those runs. Today, he’s made it count.

Mr Stunning won the Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint against an international field at Sha Tin in December.

While the Sprint Cup result was formful, Beauty Only landed a 36-1 upset in the Group 2 Chairman’s Trophy at a mile on turf, a prep for the Group 1 Champions Mile on April 29.

Ridden by Neil Callan, Beauty Only closed from the back of a field of 10 with a wide rally to win by a neck over 12-1 Western Express. Pingwu Spark, a 7-1 chance, finished third after racing in the middle of the field for the first half-mile.

Time Warp, the 2-1 favorite, was part of a solid pace but faded with more than a furlong remaining and ran last, beaten 4 3/4 lengths.

The final time of 1:32.84 for a mile on turf was the second-fastest in Sha Tin history.

Beauty Only, a 7-year-old gelding, ended a 13-race losing streak since taking the Group 1 Hong Kong Mile in December 2016. Beauty Only is trained by Tony Cruz, who said the gelding needs firm turf to be at his best.

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