Hong Kong: Pair from Size barn prominent in Happy Valley feature

It’s verging on the language of epic poetry, this listing of the main combatants in the featured sixth race Wednesday at Happy Valley, where Sparkling Dragon meets Drops of God in a 1,200-meter Class 2 handicap for horses rated 100-80.

Sparkling Dragon has the experience and the proven ability in Happy Valley races at this class level and distance; Drops of God brings upside and clear talent but must transfer his Sha Tin form to Happy Valley, avoid getting drawn into a pace battle, and prove he can compete above Class 3.

Drops of God will have jockey Joao Moreira in the saddle as one of two starters from trainer John Size, who also sends out Sight Success, a horse with some merit in his own right. Sight Success won the first three races of his career debuting last season at Hong Kong but could not progress from that hot start, losing the last four starts of his 2020-21 campaign and his first two this season. Sight Success finally broke through last out with a fourth victory but did so under favorable circumstances. Carrying 118 pounds in a 1,000-meter Class 2 at Happy Valley, Sight Success went to the lead from post 1 and after being passed by Handsome Bo Bo on the turn, came back to beat a rival that carried 13 pounds more.

Sight Success, ridden by Victor Borges, looks like one three serious pace players in the featured sixth, and one assumes Moreira will try to take Drops of God back into a tracking position from post 9. Four-year-old Drops of God won his career debut in a Class 3 last season and went on to win and twice finish third in Class 3s, all going 1,200 meters at Sha Tin. It was a promising first season’s racing and after fading off the pace to finish fifth in his 2021-22 debut, Drops of God convincingly cleared the Class 3 ranks Oct. 1 while toting 129 pounds in another Sha Tin Class 3. Wednesday, trying Happy Valley for the first time, Drops of God gets in at 116 pounds, nine fewer than top-rated Sparkling Dragon, and seems like he could be favored.

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Sparkling Dragon, a 7-year-old trained by Tony Millard, carries high weight in the field, but his rating of 90 is well below the top of this handicap range and thus Sparking Dragon’s burden is a manageable 125 pounds. We know the gelding can handle that assignment. When his form hit a peak during the latter portion of the 2020-21 racing season, Sparkling Dragon won back-to-back Happy Valley 1,200-meter contests while toting 131 pounds at Class 3 and 128 at Class 2. Sparkling Dragon made this season’s debut in deep water, a Class 1 at Sha Tin, and came home a tame 12th, but this is a Happy Valley horse whose trainer likely was just shaking off rust for a move into a spot like Wednesday’s.

Post time for the feature is 9:15 a.m. Eastern on a card that starts at 6:45. Catch all the Hong Kong action at DRFBets.com.

Tourbillon Diamond takes Sa Sa Ladies photo

Tourbillon Diamond turned a perfect trip and a favorable weight into a narrow victory Sunday at Sha Tin in the Group 3 Sa Sa Ladies Purse Handicap. Stalking the pace under Alexei Badel, Tourbillon Diamond, toting just 113 pounds, won a three-horse photo over Ka Ying Star, who carried 131 pounds, and Reliable Team, another lightweight at 115. All well and good, but the best horse in this 1,800-meter race likely was Glorious Dragon, who carried plenty weight – 129 pounds – and had zero luck when he needed it most. Racing inside and near the back of the field, Glorious Dragon and Zac Purton found themselves behind a wall of horses with 400 meters to run and literally never found room the rest of the way. Purton made one futile try in the final 50 meters to split rivals but never had enough room and had to check his mount, who wound up losing a photo for fourth, across the wire.

Also on Sunday, hot prospect Nervous Witness only finished third as an odds-on favorite in Class 3 handicap over a straight 1,000 meters. The Davis Hayes-trained 4-year-old had romped in his first two races, also down the Sha Tin straight sprint course, but had no apparent excuse beyond carrying top weight of 133 pounds for a sound defeat. But while Nervous Witness might have disappointed, the race winner, Cordyceps Six, might be a good horse in his own right. Just a 3-year-old, Cordyceps Six was coming off a strong Class 4 win over 1,000 meters, and under just 117 pounds Sunday he stalked Nervous Witness from fifth place in the early stages before blowing past the four in front of him at the furlong grounds and going on to a two-length score.