They’re starting out with both a bang and a whimper Sunday at Sha Tin. The first two contests on a 10-race card, a Class 1 handicap over 1,650 meters on dirt and a Class 2 handicap at 1,800 meters on turf, are the highest-level races on the program.
The Group 1, $450,000 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 is the featured race among nine on so-called Super Saturday at Meydan Racecourse. Prep races for the Dubai World Cup card on March 26 fill a program that starts at 6 a.m. Eastern with an Arabian race.
Group 1 races for Southern Hemisphere 3-year-old milers highlight races at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne and Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney in Australia on Saturday, races somewhat overshadowed by the presence of leading older horses in Group 2 races earlier on the programs.
Declan Schuster's Hong Kong Selections and Analysis for Sunday, March 6, 2022 at Sha Tin.
It may be post time for the Group 3 Newmarket Handicap at Newcastle Racecourse in Australia on Friday before the favorite is determined in a field of 13. As of Wednesday, runners such as Rock, Riodini, Special Reward, and Through the Cracks were floating around at 5-1 and 6-1 in early betting. Others such as Dajraan and Nimalee were slightly higher at 9-1, but have attractive credentials.
The 5-year-old mare Anatolian Charm will be closing through the stretch of a handicap at 1 1/4 miles at Port Macquarie Racecourse in Australia on Thursday.
Things may be working out beautifully for the Hong Kong connections of the New Zealand-bred 3-year-old gelding Lucky Sweynesse.
From April to August of last year, Corbulo won four times in England at distances ranging from a mile at Bath Racecourse to 1 5/16 miles at Chester Racecourse. The versatility could serve Corbulo well when he has his Australian debut in a handicap at 1 1/8 miles at Sandown Racecourse in Melbourne on Wednesday.
Declan Schuster's Hong Kong Selections and Analysis for Wednesday, March 2, 2022 at Happy Valley.
The American horses that ran well on Saturday in Saudi Arabia appear likely to ship straight to Dubai for races on the March 26 Dubai World Cup card. The ones that did not are coming back home.
