Good Ba Ba beats Sacred Kingdom

The miler Good Ba Ba defeated the sprinter Sacred Kingdom in the seven-furlong Queen's Silver Jubilee Cup at Sha Tin on Sunday, but needed some luck to get the job done.

Good Ba Ba got first run on his rival in the $577,000 Hong Kong Group 1 contest as jockey Gerald Mosse found himself boxed in aboard Sacred Kingdom entering the stretch. The 2.85-1 Good Ba Ba and Olivier Doleuze struck the front at the eighth pole and held off the fast-closing Sacred Kingdom by a half-length, covering the seven furlongs in 1:21.30 on good ground in the first-ever meeting between a winner of Hong Kong Mile (Good Ba Ba) and a Hong Kong Sprint winner (Sacred Kingdom). It was another three-quarters of a length back to the two-time defending titleholder Joyful Winner in third.

Later, Helene Mascot justified 1.35-1 favoritism in the $2 million Hong Kong Derby for 4-year-olds with a neck victory over Jackpot Delight. Sixth behind Authorized in last year's Epsom Derby under the name of Salford Mill, Helene Mascot clocked 2:01.30 for the 1 1/4 miles. Ridden by Felix Coetzee, Helene Mascot is a Peintre Celebre 4-year-old trained by Tony Cruz, who said that Helene Mascot's next race would be the 1 1/4-mile Queen Elizabeth II Cup against older horses at Sha Tin on April 27. Cruz also hinted that he would like to send Helene Mascot back to England for a possible try at next year's King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.