By Leo Schlink
Hugh Bowman is optimistic Raging Blizzard has quality to cope with a rise in grade when John Size’s in-form sprinter bids for a third successive victory when tackling the HK$3.72 million Class 1 TVB Cup Handicap (1200m) at Sha Tin on Sunday (9 February).
For a maiden who has started three times, the Australian filly Price Tag has a growing reputation.
Price Tag has raced only in stakes and has finished third, fourth, and second. The close finishes make Price Tag the early favorite to beat 15 rivals in the $1.25 million Inglis Millennium Stakes at 5 1/2 furlongs for Southern Hemisphere 2-year-olds at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on Friday evening.
Price Tag, trained by Anthony and Sam Freedman, was the 5-2 favorite in early betting on Thursday.
Fresh from Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) success last week, Luke Ferraris continued a barnstorming season with victory on Mr Ascendency in the HK$3.12 million Class 2 Tsun Yip Handicap (1650m) at Happy Valley on Wednesday night (5 February).
Triumphant after My Wish’s brilliant win in the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Mile for Mark Newnham, Ferraris combined with Ricky Yiu to land the midweek feature aboard Mr Ascendency with a perfectly-timed ride.
Unbeaten in her first four starts on the island of Tasmania in Australia in late 2023 and early 2024, Geegees Mistruth did not have the same measure of success later last year in group stakes at tracks in the Melbourne area.
A return to Tasmania, and a start in Thursday’s Group 3 Mystic Journey Stakes at six furlongs at Hobart Racecourse, may reverse a five-race losing streak.
Paul Lally:
R1: 8-6-5-1
R2: 3-2-9-1
R3: 1-7-8-10
R4: 2-1-5-8
R5: 5-8-2-7
R6: 2-7-6-3
R7: 4-6-3-2
R8: 10-3-1-6
R9: 8-7-5-9
Best Bet: R6 N2 Northern Beast
Longshot: R9 N8 Super Joy N Fun
Play: R8 QQP 1-3-10
Tom Wood:
R1: 2-6-1-3
R2: 3-4-9-6
R3: 1-7-4-2
R4: 1-2-5-6
R5: 1-2-5-12
R6: 2-7-1-4
Happy Valley Selections
(Wednesday, February 05, 2025)
Race 1: #2 Super Baby, #1 Smashing Express, #4 Confringo, #8 Podium
Race 2: #3 Inno Century, #9 Super Sixty, #4 Excellent Peers, #7 Solar River
Race 3: #1 Sky Jewellery, #10 Glory B, #6 Great Spirit, #2 Mega Bonus
Race 4: #1 Moments In Time, #6 Flamingo Trillion, #2 Helene Feeling, #8 Red Hare King
Race 5: #1 Circuit Duffy, #2 Golden Rise, #5 Fortune Whiskey, #3 Polaris
Bristling with emotion, Luke Ferraris has jubilated in My Wish’s HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) triumph for trainer Mark Newnham at Sha Tin on Friday (31 January), prompting the young South African to reflect on Sweet Orange’s success in the same race in 2012.
Trained by Ferraris’ father David, Sweet Orange’s victory 13 seasons ago remains one of Ferraris’ most vivid memories from his childhood in Hong Kong.
The Saudi Cup, with its $20 million purse, was created, at least in a strictly sporting sense, to bring together the leading middle-distance runners from around the world. While the enterprise hasn’t failed, the race’s last four winners – Senor Buscador, Panthalassa, Emblem Road, and Mishriff – hardly rate as global superstars.
But this winter, three weeks away from the sixth Saudi Cup, the race appears to be conforming to its creators’ vision.
