When Harmony Victory won for the first time in six starts in a minor handicap at Happy Valley in February, the gelding raced closer to the pace than his typical stalking style.
The same scenario may unfold in Saturday’s Lung Cheung Handicap at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong. Harmony Victory should have a pace to follow from speedy runners such as Ka Ying Star, Encouraging and Good Standing.
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CHELTENHAM, England – Al Boum Photo ended a career-long drought for top Irish trainer Willie Mullins with a 12-1 upset win in the Grade 1 Cheltenham Gold Cup at Cheltenham Racecourse in 2019.
Six times, Mullins finished second in the Gold Cup from 1999 to 2016 before Al Boum Photo cruised to victory in England’s top weight-for-age steeplechase.
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The 63-year-old trainer may have another Gold Cup trophy to take home Friday.
Alligator Blood, the Australian 3-year-old, is unbeaten in five starts since October. The winning streak has made Alligator Blood quite popular with voters, at least those who follow racing in Australia. When a public ballot was held to partially determine the field for Saturday’s $3.26 million All-Star Mile at Caulfield Racecourse near Melbourne, Alligator Blood won the “election” with more than 18,000 votes.
Alligator Blood is a strong favorite for the one-mile race, which is billed as the world’s richest mile race
CHELTENHAM, England - Maybe it’s the seven-race winning streak since the autumn of 2018. Perhaps it’s that he’s from a smaller stable or that his owner has been blind since birth.
With all that put together, Paisley Park is an immensely popular 8-year-old gelding, who just happens to be brilliant at running three-mile races over hurdles. Throw in a grueling uphill finish and Paisley Park is even more dangerous.
R1: 2-5-1-3
R2: 1-8-11-9
R3: 7-1-3-10
R4: 5-9-4-7
R5: 9-1-11-4
R6: 9-4-5-1
R7: 4-1-9-2
R8: 4-6-11-9
Bets: R6 N9 Everyone’s Elite
Each/way: R3 N7 Nunchuks
Play: Q/QP R3 1-3-7
Tom Wood:
R1: 2 – 1 – 4 – 5
R2: 1 – 9 – 11 – 8
R3: 1 – 4 – 3 – 7
R4: 4 – 5 – 7 – 1
R5: 11 – 1 – 9 – 4
R6: 9 – 1 – 5 – 4
R7: 7 – 4 – 1 – 9
R8: 1 – 6 – 11 – 5
Super Saturday at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai was run without fans in attendance, owing to coronavirus concerns, and came a week after the inaugural Saudi Cup, which sucked away some high-level talent that in previous years might’ve raced at Meydan. Yet the seven-race program on Saturday still produced a series of eye-catching performances.
Tom Wood:
R1: 10 – 1 – 12 – 7
R2: 1 – 2 – 10 – 7
R3: 1 – 5 – 2 – 11
R4: 1 – 5 – 4 – 3
R5: 5 – 4 – 10 – 9
R6: 3 – 4 – 8 – 10
R7: 6 – 4 – 7 – 2
R8: 14 – 3 – 6 – 5
R9: 8 – 3 – 1 – 11
R10: 3 – 2 – 12 – 10
R11: 1 – 3 – 12 – 6
BEST: R4 N1 HOT KING PRAWN (WIN)
VALUE: R9 N8 RELIABLE TEAM (EW)
PLAY: R9 – QQP 1,3,8
Andrew Le Jeune:
R1: 6-1-10-7
R2: 7-10-1-6
R3: 11-1-5-3
R4: 1-5-6-7
The featured fourth race Sunday at Sha Tin is a Class 1 handicap that could pass as a Group 1 stakes.
The 1,200-meter sprint drew only six entrants but among them are three of the top four rated sprinters in Hong Kong: Hot King Prawn, Mr. Stunning, and Full of Beauty.
The robust future-book market for the four-day Cheltenham National Hunt Festival that begins in western England on Tuesday has had a turbulent few weeks.
In late February, Epatante, the favorite for Tuesday’s $582,840 Champion Hurdle at about two miles, was found to be coughing, a situation that caused the 6-year-old mare’s price to rise from 3-1 to 9-2. When she was deemed to have recovered, the 6-year-old Epatante was restored as the 3-1 favorite.
