Win Bright scores 47-1 upset win in Queen Elizabeth II Cup

Win Bright, a 47-1 outsider, scored a shocking win in Sunday’s Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Sha Tin Racecourse in track-record time for 2,000 meters, or 1 1/4 miles, on turf.

A Japanese shipper, Win Bright was timed in 1:58.81 and prevailed by three-quarters of a length over 8-5 favorite Exultant. Ridden by Masami Matsuoka, Win Bright raced in midpack in the field of 13 and overcame traffic in early stretch before reaching the front in the final sixteenth.

Exultant, who won the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin in December, finished a neck in front of another Japanese shipper, Lys Gracieux.

Win Bright won the Group 2 Nakayama Kinen at 1 1/8 miles in Japan on Feb. 24 for the second consecutive year. The $3.05 million Queen Elizabeth II Cup was Win Bright’s first win at the highest level.

A 5-year-old by Stay Gold, Win Bright is owned by Win Co. Ltd. and trained by Yoshihiro Hatakeyama.

“He had always been beaten in Group 1 races, but his winning form from his two starts this season made me think that he was developing and improving,” Hatakeyama said. “I was quite sure he would be competitive at the top level. I couldn’t be confident that he would win, of course, but I did think he would be very competitive.”

Hatakeyama said Win Bright will be considered for the Group 1 Hong Kong Cup in December.

There were three Group 1 races at Sha Tin on Sunday. Win Bright was the surprise winner. Beauty Generation, Hong Kong’s reigning Horse of the Year, won the Champions Mile as a 1-20 favorite. Beat the Clock won the Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize at six furlongs as the 7-5 second choice.

Beat the Clock, ridden by former Hong Kong leading rider Joao Moreira, was always near the front and won by a half-length over 7-1 Rattan, who finished a neck in front 25-1 Little Giant.

“I would say the race actually went perfect for him,” Moreira said. “Rattan wasn’t giving up. He was dashing home and made it very hard, but fortunately we have a very brave horse. He tries his best, and once again, he’s done it.”

Santa Ana Lane, the 4-5 favorite, finished fourth by 2 1/4 lengths in his first start outside of Australia, where he has developed into a leading sprinter.

Beat the Clock, trained by John Size for Merrick Chung Wai-Lik, was third in the 2018 Chairman’s Sprint Prize.

Sunday’s $2.039 million Chairman’s Sprint Prize lost one of its leading local hopes on Sunday when Mr Stunning was withdrawn on veterinary advice. Mr Stunning and Beat the Clock were first and third in the Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint in December.

Size said Beat the Clock is unlikely to race again during the current Hong Kong season, which ends in July, and that the Hong Kong Sprint is a long-range goal.