Three horses that ran in the Hong Kong Derby in March and one that could start in the 2020 running are part of an intriguing field in Sunday’s $249,115 Staunton Handicap at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong.
Run at a mile, the Staunton Handicap will be the Hong Kong debut of Thinkin’ Big, a two-time Group 3 winner in Australia in 2018 who is considered a long-term prospect for the Hong Kong Derby next year.
SHA TIN SELECTIONS
(Wednesday, June 12)
:: Hong Kong: Free PPs, picks, and analysis
Brett Davis
R1: 8-1-4-6
R2: 5-3-2-4
R3: 4-5-13-6
R4: 12-4-2-10
R5: 5-2-7-3
R6: 5-3-2-9
R7: 8-5-4-1
R8: 6-11-5-9
Best Bet – R6: #5 Happy Tour
Longshot – R3: #4 Speedy Wally
Best Play – R3: Q/Qp 4,5,6,13
Andrew Le Jeune
R1: 9-3-1-8
R2: 5-2-7-1
R3: 5-2-1-10
SHA TIN SELECTIONS
(Wednesday, June 12, 2019)
Race 1: #3 Enjoy Life, #6 Remarkable, #1 Splendid Timing, #8 Crown Avenue
Race 2: #5 Touch Of Luck, #7 Coolceleb, #4 Enfolding, #3 Starlit Knight
Race 3: #5 Lucky Win Win, #10 Little Fantasy, #11 Mi Blanco, #7 Above
Race 4: #4 Lucky Thought, #7 Promise Kept, #12 Fame And Fortune, #3 Elite Boy
Race 5: #2 Sky Treasure, #1 Star Luck, #6 Grand Harbour, #9 Ever Strong
Andrew Le Jeune
R1: 2-1-3-4
R2: 1-5-8-12
R3: 2-1-7-3
R4: 8-7-6-11
R5: 1-5-10-12
R6: 13-8-2-5
R7: 6-11-5-9
R8: 7-3-4-1
R9: 8-9-11-1
R10: 8-3-4-9
Best: R8 #7 Fun Times
Long: R6 #13 Bundle Of Energy
Play: Q/QP R6 2-8-13
Paul Lally
Race1 10-2-3-1
Race2 5-11-8-10
Race3 2-1-3-7
Race4 7-8-13-6
Race5 1-8-5-3
Race6 9-6-2-13
Race7 9-5-6-11
Race8 13-7-3-2
Race9 8-3-11-10
Race10 3-8-12-9
SHA TIN SELECTIONS
(Saturday, June 8, 2019)
:: Hong Kong: Free PPs, picks, and analysis
Race 1: #1 Winning Supreme, #2 Bulb Elite, #10 Victoriam, #3 All You Need
Race 2: #5 Richcity Fortune, #10 Ambitious Speedy, #12 Nashashuk, #1 Super Model
Race 3: #2 Thanks Forever, #7 Goko, #1 Multimillion, #3 Utopia Life
Race 4: #7 Surewin, #6 Hurricane Hunter, #8 Big Bully, #1 Liverbird Star
Brett Davis – Selections
R1 – 5-1-7-8
R2 – 5-6-3-4
R3 – 2-6-9-12
R4 – 5-2-1-4
R5 – 4-1-11-6
R6 – 4-1-9-11
R7 – 3-4-5-7
R8 – 6-9-7-3
Best – R8 n6 Green Luck
Longshot – R7 n3 Shanghai Master
Best Play – R8 Quin 6 / 7,9
Andrew Le Jeune:
R1: 5-7-8-1
R2: 3-4-11-1
R3: 2-9-6-4
R4: 5-2-4-3
R5: 8-1-11-10
R6: 4-3-9-11
R7: 8-5-7-11
R8: 10-6-7-2
HAPPY VALLEY SELECTIONS
(Wednesday, June 5, 2019)
:: Hong Kong: Free PPs, picks, and analysis
Race 1: #5 Tashidelek, #8 Salto Olimpico, #7 God Of Dragon, #1 Giant Turtle
Race 2: #5 Golden Cannon, #3 Lucky Shiny Day, #11 Winning Circle, #4 Godspeed
Race 3: #4 Snap Fit, #11 Demon’s Rock, #6 Hong Kong Win, #2 Everbrave
Race 4: #5 Reliable Team, #1 Oriental Elite, #4 Packing Rockstar, #10 High Rev
Before he was well beaten in two of Hong Kong’s seven-figure races for 4-year-olds earlier this year, Green Luck won for the first time on the circuit at Happy Valley Racecourse in December.
The Australian import struggled in races at Sha Tin Racecourse through the winter, but returned to Happy Valley on May 1 and won a handicap at about a mile and 50 yards.
Wednesday, Green Luck starts in the $248,841 Wong Nai Chung Gap Handicap at Happy Valley, which at 1 1/8 miles should provide a test.
Indy Champ zoomed to an upset win in his Grade 1 debut in Sunday’s $1.96 million Yasuda Kinen at Tokyo Racecourse in Japan, beating the accomplished females Aerolithe and Almond Eye, who were second and third.
Almond Eye, Japan’s Horse of the Year in 2018, had her first start of the year in Japan in the Yasuda Kinen. She won the $6 million Dubai Turf at Meydan in the United Arab Emirates in her 2019 debut on March 30.
Indy Champ, a Grade 3 winner at a mile on turf in Tokyo in February, earned a fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita with the win.