Hong Kong: Excellent Proposal begins season in Class 1 at Sha Tin
RACE REPLAY IS NOT AVAILABLE
Excellent Proposal began his 2020-21 Hong Kong racing season with a victory in a 1,400-meter Class 3 handicap at Sha Tin, and the fact the gelding launches his 2021-22 campaign in a 1,400-meter Class 1 handicap, the featured seventh race Saturday at Sha Tin, shows the progress Excellent Proposal made last season.
That early-season score was the first of three straight wins for Excellent Proposal, who then threw in a clunker before rebounding to capture the Hong Kong Classic Mile, first leg of the 4-year-old Classic Series. Excellent Proposal went on to creditable fourth-place finishers in the Hong Kong Classic Cup over 1,800 meters and the Hong Kong Derby at 2,000 meters and gets back into action Saturday as one of the more promising 5-year-olds on the circuit.
The Saturday feature, dubbed the Panasonic Cup, is for horses rated 110-85, and Excellent Proposal, rated 101, carries a manageable 125 pounds, though he faces a somewhat challenging draw in post 11. Joao Moreira rides for trainer John Size, whose stable has been rumbling to life the last couple weeks.
:: Hong Kong: Free PPs, picks, analysis, replays, and live streaming
:: Download DRF's Guide to Betting Hong Kong Racing
Buddies, who upset the Group 3 Celebration Cup Handicap under a feathery 113 pounds on Sept. 26, carries top weight of 133 pounds, a heavy burden, though the gelding did manage to win a Class 3 dirt contest at Sha Tin more than two years ago the last time he shouldered more than 128 pounds. Duke Wai, fourth in the Celebration Cup, brings solid form but has raced farther than 1,200 meters – finishing fourth at this distance – just once in his last three Hong Kong seasons.
Size has two more entrants, Lucky Express and Silver Express, both, like Excellent Proposal, making their seasonal debut. Lightly raced Silver Express, who ended his last form cycle with an encouraging third racing 1,400 meters over the Sha Tin course at the Class 2 level, carries just 114 pounds, getting a massive weight break from the field’s top-rated runners.
Post time for the 10-race card is 1 a.m. Eastern. You can catch all the action at DRFBets.com.