From RACING POST HK

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The 2009-10 season finished in Perfect Style for the two "Kings of the Valley", trainer Caspar Fownes and jockey Brett Prebble, who claimed the feature race of the night to cap highly successful seasons which saw them finish second in their respective premiership titles. Despite bowing out of the epic premiership duel with Douglas Whyte just a couple of races earlier, Prebble drove Perfect Style to a deserved win with as much energy as if he was only just starting the term.

Perfect Style claimed Willing Storm by a neck on the line, with a further neck to early leader Norman Invader - despite both placegetters getting much the better of a noticeable track bias favouring the rail.

"It was a nice way to finish the season for me, and the horse really deserved to win tonight," Prebble said. "There was a horrible rails bias all night, and I had the chance to stick to the inside, but I weighed up my options and decided it was better for the horse to keep his momentum than try and worry about how the track was playing.

"I was following two good chances in the race and we always had them covered in the run," he added.

Prebble was given a severe reprimand by chief steward Kim Kelly for his ride, however, after he was judged to have allowed Perfect Style to shift in during the run to the post.

Darren Beadman also had a night to remember, booting home a double and making the most of some inside runs to get the John Moore-trained Kenobe and the John Size-trained National Treasure home.

"The rails runs were just gold tonight, I had the right draws to use that bias and both the winners just travelled sweetly throughout," Beadman said.

"Kenobe is a bit of a Happy Valley specialist now and he's been very consistent since he arrived in John's yard mid-season.

"National Treasure is just in a real purple patch of form, and he showed a really nice turn of foot tonight which should see him win a few races yet."

Trainer Me Tsui Yu-sak also bagged a pair before the summer break, leading Record High and Cosmo Successor into the winner's stall for a race-to-race double. He was quick to credit apprentice Keith Yeung Ming-lun for the win of Cosmo Successor - a victory that helped ensure the promising young rider held his position at the top of the claimer's list and was crowned Champion Apprentice after the final event of the night.

"Cosmo Successor won because of the efforts of the jockey, it was as simple as that," Tsui said. "When the other speed horses didn't jump to the front, he used his initiative to go forward, but then he brought the horse back underneath him in the middle stages and let him have a rest.

"He doesn't normally have the stamina to run the trip right out if he is pressured all the way, and tonight Keith was able to rate him beautifully in the lead."

Weichong Marwing capped off a late-season burst of winners with another success last night, winning on How Wonderful, a result that pleased owner and chairman John Chan Cho-chak.

"I just hope I can come out of the break with the same momentum that I've finished the season with," Marwing said. "It has given me a lot of confidence and I have been riding on a real high of late."

From RACING POST in Hong Kong

Thank God for Showtime" was Douglas Whyte's summary of a day that promised to wrap up a 10th straight jockeys' championship, but left the door unlocked - if not necessarily wide open - for arch-rival Brett Prebble as he seeks a first crown. A memorable battle has seen fortunes turn and turn again, with Prebble leading most of the season, then headed by Whyte in April, before taking the lead again in May, before he looked like he had settled it, going nine clear after his record-breaking six timer at Happy Valley last month.

But Whyte has clawed his way back to the front, led by two wins at the start of yesterday and made it three after the John Size-trained Showtime took the first.

Most thought the Durban Demon would wrap up the title at any moment, but the four hot favourites he had later for Size failed to turn up, his other well-backed runners weren't good enough and that left Whyte with a single win.

Prebble replied with Sounds Excellent for Manfred Man Ka-leung and the status quo was maintained.

"I'm not holding my breath for it but it is nice to still have a sniff," said Prebble.

"Two behind and eight races to run - it's not easy but I still have half a chance and it has to be good for racing that we will take it right down to the last day, maybe even the last race of the season."

Punters dived into Whyte's red-hot favourites all afternoon - Hot Shot in the second, Enhanced in the fourth, Enriched in the day's feature, the Sha Tin Mile Trophy, and then Sichuan Success a race later, but only Hot Shot managed a place.

"Thank God for Showtime today - who would have thought at the start of the season that he would win three in a row?" the Demon said.

"But he's been a typical John Size improver, learning and growing in confidence and I don't think he's finished yet either. That was a solid win today and he can go on with it after a break.

"As for the others, well, some of them, like Enhanced and Sichuan Success, are young horses who were heavily punished in the ratings and just weren't ready to live up to where they had been put by the handicapper at this stage."

Whyte agreed Wednesday's Happy Valley programme would be the winner for the title not having been decided yesterday.

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Trainer David Hall told the owners of brilliant speedster Blaze King he thought he "could finish the season the same way he started it" before Sunday's Pok Fu Lam Handicap (1,000m) and was as good as his word. Blaze King (Mark Du Plessis) gave a fine display of sustained speed to register his fifth win from nine attempts at the course and distance and won like a hot favourite not a 35-1 chance, all of which was expected.

Hall took over the gelding from Tony Millard at the beginning of this season when he looked to have plateaued in Class Two and has now won twice in Class One up the straight with the four-year-old, who could even be a factor in something better in the form he showed this time.

"People have been telling me he's not going well but he trialled brilliantly in the blinkers a couple of weeks ago and I was happy with him. The problem with him is that he's been hard to place since he won early in the season," Hall explained.

"He had a mucopus another time when I was able to get him in a suitable race and four runs ago he got badly blocked here. We've had to experiment with the dirt and Happy Valley and other things that haven't worked, but there just aren't enough of these kinds of races for this grade of horse.

"I knew he was in form and, if he couldn't run well coming back to his favourite course and distance and throwing the blinkers on, I would have been disappointed. I sent an email to the owners yesterday and said I thought that Blaze King could finish the season the way he started - with a win."

Du Plessis was both surprised and delighted with the win after going to the race without high expectations and emerging with his biggest Hong Kong victory.

"I trialled him and he went sensational, then I rode him the other day in the 1,200m and he was dismal but obviously this straight course is his thing," he said.

The bubble burst for Multiglory, who had won four of his five starts down the straight in lower grades and the three-year-old had to settle for a brave third at his first attempt in Class One. He was run out of second in the final 100m by stablemate No More Green, who was sensationally backed from double figures in to 4-1.

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Lawrie Fownes has experienced some great days in racing, but the former trainer says he has never seen a greater feat than that his son Caspar achieved on Sunday. The proud father was lost for words to describe the phenomenal six winners his son led into the winner's stall, and believes we may never see the achievement repeated.

"It is truly an unbelievable achievement, and I am extremely proud" Fownes said. "Someone told me that a bloke trained six winners in a meeting way back in 1975, but there is no way the competition was as fierce back then as it is today.

"I know Caspar was confident he had a strong team coming to the races, and possibly having three winners, but to knock up six is remarkable."

Caspar took all before him to become just the second trainer in the modern era to lead in six winners in one meeting after Cheung Hok-man first completed the feat on November 15, 1975.

"It truly is a marvellous achievement when you talk about the professional era of Hong Kong racing," Fownes said. "Six winners at a meeting is almost impossible at any meeting and to do it in an environment that is competitive and as world class as Hong Kong is indescribable."

The whole Fownes family are great supporters of Caspar's career with wife Alix, father and sister Fenella regulars at the races. Fownes set up for a good day by claiming two of the first three races with Tout Va Bien and Perfect Gear, but an unbelievable run of four consecutive victories from races six to nine elevated his day to the truly remarkable.

Telecom Gogo, Win Practitioner, Jumbo Gold and O'Reilly Magic all hit the line first in the space of an hour and a half, leaving heads spinning at Happy Valley as punters and fellow trainers alike took in the magnitude of the occasion.

"It was amazing really, a great day for Caspar and I doubt we'll see anything like it for a long time yet," premiership leading trainer John Size said.

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From RACING POST HK

John Size's team is showing no signs of slowing down late in the season and the premiership-leading trainer presented a number of quality barrier trial runners at Sha Tin yesterday. Suspended jockey Douglas Whyte hasn't slackened in his workload either, guiding most of the Size-trained runners in the hope of still being able to peg back Brett Prebble in the jockeys' title.

The results of the trial sessions hint that a late season surge from the combination could be well and truly on the cards over the final 11 meetings, especially given that there are seven Sha Tin meetings remaining and their strike-rate is far better at the big track.

Standouts were Enthused, Almighty Windpower, Spinnaker, Entrapment, Ejimeric Te Specso and Diego, who was the victim of an abandoned race last Sunday.

Enthused wore pacifiers and Whyte steered him in behind runners for much of the 1,000m heat to eventually finish fifth to Blaze King in a time of 58.5 seconds - the fastest heat of the morning. He hasn't been sighted at the races yet this season, and it was encouraging to see him come back so well from some lameness in his near-side fore leg at the start of the term.

Diego looks in tip-top shape and travelled strongly down the centre of the course in heat three, showing no signs of a previous tendon injury from late last year. That heat was won by the David Hall-trained My Good Friend in a time of 59.4 seconds, but the way Diego closed off over the final stages was impressive and his third placing was full of merit.

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From Racing Post Hong Kong

Perfect Sprint surprised both his trainer and jockey in snatching a last-stride victory from London China Town in the Kam Tin River Handicap yesterday. Rounding the home turn, jockey Brett Prebble feared that the horse wouldn't get a chance at running down the leaders, and at the 200 metres his trainer, Almond Lee, thought he would be lucky to run a place, but when the judge called for the photo it was the lightly raced Align gelding who figured prominently. "I knew the leaders had gone along too quick, but even at the 200m marker I didn't think he could nail London China Town the way he did," Lee said.

"He was a bit stiff on the track today, he had wet form in New Zealand before I bought him, but I took the chance that his good action would allow him to race well here, too."

Perfect Sprint beat London China Town by a short head, with New King Prawn a further 1-3/4 lengths away in third.

The victory helped Prebble draw level with the suspended Douglas Whyte in the jockeys' premiership at 73 wins apiece.

"He appreciated the high tempo and really motored once we got clear running," Prebble said.

"He'll be a better horse next year for sure, I think he will appreciate a lighter weight, and I even think he felt better at Happy Valley where the track is a bit softer.

"After today I think you have to rate him as a serious racehorse."

Prebble had a tough day at the office, finishing the narrowest of seconds to Ultra Fantasy on Green Birdie in the Sprint Cup and having one of his prime chances, Wind Damper, scratched at the barriers prior to the start of the Nam Chung River Handicap.

Prebble felt Wind Damper's action wasn't quite right on the way to the barriers and called for a veterinary examination prior to the start of race six.

The vet found the horse to be slightly lame in his right hind leg and Prebble had to be content to ride back to the grandstand in the stewards' car.

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By ALAN AITKEN

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While the focus of Monday's inquiry into Darren Beadman's ride on Collection in Sunday's Audemars Piguet QE II Cup was on the jockey's tactics in the race, it did throw up something else that requires some attention. Whatever the outcome of the stewards' investigation of Beadman's ride, it has to be said that Collection himself was a contributing factor at every stage.

When Beadman might have been expected to maintain a position two wide going out of the straight the first time instead of winding up on the fence - all the better to make a looping move around the field in the middle stages if the most likely scenario of a very slow tempo occurred - Collection was not helping.

Whatever Beadman's intentions at that stage, Collection was racing keenly and causing his rider to be more concentrated on getting him to settle and stay off the heels ahead.

That allowed Brett Prebble (Unique Jewellery) to dictate to Beadman and steer him in towards the rail, which ended any chance of Beadman making a move around the field - not that he was really going to able to anyway because Collection continued to behave like a spoiled brat the whole way and was not really in the mood to be doing anything clever.

Then his antics made it difficult for Beadman as he rode the horse out in the final stages with his left hand not pushing him but busy trying to hold him out off the ones inside him.

No, whatever the stewards conclude of the riding, that is not the concern in the report on Monday.

More interesting was the evidence that Collection had blood in his trachea when subjected to an endoscopic examination, or scope, after what turned out to be his final gallop the previous Saturday.

That he hadn't been given a solid workout in the days between was unusual - not trainer John Moore's style - and people we know who scan the trackwork for winning clues were opposing Collection on that basis alone.

Beadman also told stewards that he had the dirty scope on his mind when he was riding the horse out in the straight.

To those who would say that Moore had a moral obligation to tell the press, or therefore the public, that Collection had blood in his trachea, we would disagree.

Trainers offer what information they do give in interviews as a courtesy, as publicity for the sport and, mostly, they try to be helpful. They are under no obligation to do so and can even find themselves in breach of the rules for giving up information that might be considered the property of the owner.

The situation that Moore may have not wanted to risk, if he disclosed this information publicly, was that Collection may have faced a vet test, perhaps even one that required the horse to be exercised beforehand.

He had a fit horse which he didn't want to push over the edge in the days leading to a major race, so he didn't gallop him.

Had he been forced to put him under pressure for the sake of an examination, and pushed him over the edge into either a full-on bleeding attack or just flattened him, Collection may have missed the race or run worse.

We can understand Moore's point of view and when all is said and done, the horse having had a minor blood-in-trachea episode over a week before the race was something that could be managed.

Yet probably many a punter in the street among those who bet HK$10 million on Collection in the win pool alone on Sunday might have felt some entitlement to information that the odds-on favourite had any sort of issue on the previous Saturday.

When former chief steward John Schreck introduced the post-race scoping of horses into the stewards' reports, it was to explain poor performances by fancied runners and it has clearly been a relevant and valuable addition to the information stream for punters.

Horses with blood in their trachea, even though not full-blown bleeding attacks, have difficulty breathing and cannot perform. With this instance, we enter into the more confusing area of pre-race disclosure.

Not because there is anything murky going on, but because racehorses are athletes and, like your favourite football team, often go into battle with niggling issues or problems about to happen.

If you knew every injury being carried into a game by a top-class football team, well, you might never have a bet on them. You might be amazed they play at all.

Horses can be in a similar situation. Yet, in the contest itself, the adrenaline starts to flow, the affected area warms up and the niggling issue doesn't make a difference.

Should punters be told if runners have been borderline about being passed fit to run?

Or should the fact that they are passed mean we should regard them as in the clear, 100 per cent?

Blood in the trachea is rated on a score out of five - Collection had a low grade, a two out of five, let's call it - so should punters have been concerned about that, eight days out from the race?

Probably not, but would they have revised their thoughts away from betting on the favourite or put their faith in the trainer's judgment and presumed the old axiom of "fit to run, fit to win"?

It's a tough call but, given that the vets at Sha Tin are working for the Jockey Club, the club is, by extension, in possession of this information.

At other times, stewards do make various pre-race inquiries into the well-being of engaged horses when things are brought to their attention, and make public their results.

Perhaps then, it was the club which had the obligation to inform its customers of the low-level presence of blood in the throat of a horse which would assuredly run as a hot favourite for a high-profile race.

Together with an assurance that the club was on top of this and monitoring the situation, that would have been a better scenario than having the news trickle out after the event, when the majority of punters are already bitter at having lost their money on Collection.

Frrom HK Racing Post

Fields for Sunday's prestigious HK$14 million Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup showpiece at Sha Tin look certain to be affected by the blanket of volcanic ash across European skies, and discussions are now moving to whether visiting jockeys or trainers will even make the trip. Connections of last year's QE II Cup fourth placegetter, the French-trained Chinchon, are clinging to the faint possibility of a flight to Hong Kong today, while Brian Meehan, trainer of US$12 million Champions Mile entry Cat Junior, will keep his options open until tomorrow - but the Jockey Club international racing manager, Mark Player, is pessimistic.

"It looks very doubtful those two horses will come," said Player, who is stranded in London. "And I have been talking to the trainers of the five foreign horses which are either there or en route about contingency plans regarding jockeys for them."

British-based Kieren Fallon and Ryan Moore, and champion Belgian rider Christophe Soumillon have been booked to ride in the two international events and may get a window to fly later in the week, but Player said that was not the only issue.

"The jockeys and the trainers of the horses which are there have major commitments in Europe coming up and the concern is that, if they do manage to get to Hong Kong, they might be unable to return," he said.

"Heathrow doesn't look like opening up until Friday and might be closed again for days if the conditions demand it. Nobody really knows and I doubt that these people want to run the risk of being stranded."

The four horses already here - Mike De Kock-trained Lizard's Desire (QEII Cup) and Imbongi (Champions Mile) from Dubai, Australian raider Dao Dao (Mile) and Japan's Never Bouchon (Cup) - are all listed to work at Sha Tin this morning.

Last year's QEII Cup winner, the Luca Cumani-trained Presvis, was due to arrive overnight. Presvis is normally based in England but will be making the trip from Dubai, where he raced on March 28, so his flight is unaffected by the air travel freeze.

Hong Kong-based jockey Jeff Lloyd has picked up the ride on Dao Dao in the Champions Mile at Sha Tin on Sunday. Dao Dao will race with Michael Hawkes as the trainer because training partnerships are not allowed in Hong Kong. Hawkes said he was pleased to book Lloyd with Darren Beadman committed to ride Able One.

From HK Racing Post (www.racing.scmp.com)

Europe's volcanic travel turmoil threatens to spill over to the Audemars Piguet QE II Cup meeting at Sha Tin next Sunday, with two horses stranded and the growing possibility that visiting jockeys will be unable to make the trip. The eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano last week has caused a huge, thick cloud of volcanic ash to settle across European skies, completely shutting down air travel as far east as Poland and now spreading southwards as well.

Aircraft cannot fly through the ash cloud because of the risk of engines clogging up and hundreds of thousands of passengers have had to cancel travel plans from London's Heathrow airport alone, with trainer Sean Woods and the Jockey Club's international racing manager, Mark Player, among them after attending horse sales in England.

The shutdown seriously threatens to dash the hopes of having French galloper Chinchon here for the QE II Cup or English-trained Cat Junior for the Champions Mile.

"I've been in close contact with the shipping agencies we use and they are not giving me any reasons for optimism," Player said yesterday.

"Cat Junior was supposed to fly from London [yesterday] and that has been pushed back to early next week at the earliest. Chinchon was being floated to Amsterdam from Paris on Friday, got halfway and turned back when the airport closed. I'm told there may be a small window later on tonight so Chinchon is again being floated to Amsterdam to be there if it is possible to fly."

Player said no one had been able to say when the ash cloud would disperse, leaving the possibility that jockeys in England and France and due here next Sunday, Christophe Soumillon, Ryan Moore and Kieren Fallon, would also be unable to travel.

"The problem is that the weather right now is unusually stable - I'm looking outside and the skies over London are bright and blue and it's a fabulous, calm day," Player said.

"We need a good storm or strong winds. Nobody knows whether this will be over in a day or a week or longer. Then there's the backlog of millions of people trying to get flights."

Player said that alternative routes by unaffected areas had become difficult owing to a rail strike in France and clogging caused by overwhelming demand. "At the moment, we have four of the visiting horses at Sha Tin and Presvis due to arrive from Dubai on Monday - after that, it looks an hour-by-hour proposition, but obviously the later it gets for the horses the bigger the problem," he said.

The return match between last year's Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup winner Presvis and John Moore's Collection and Viva Pataca promises to underscore the HK$14 million spring feature on April 25 at Sha Tin after the release of fields yesterday. The Jockey Club's two international Group Ones, the QE II Cup and Champions Mile, both fell short of the maximum 14 runners when the invited runners were announced but the main event will lose nothing for that, with six overseas runners in a race where the visitors have more often held sway than not.

"I'm delighted at the high quality of the selected runners for both events," said Bill Nader, the club's racing director yesterday.

"Seasoned Group One stars from six countries on four continents will be taking part. It's indicative of Hong Kong racing's continuing drawing power that Presvis will be back to defend his crown, and that the runner-up in the Dubai World Cup will be here to take him on."

The Luca Cumani-trained Presvis beat Viva Pataca to take the QE II Cup last year when Collection was diverted to the Champions Mile. However, Collection did beat him home comfortably in the Hong Kong Cup in December, when both had to bow to French galloper Vision D'Etat.

This time around, Moore has refused to split the paths of Viva Pataca and Collection and will tackle the race double-handed in a bid to take the race he won with Viva Pataca three years ago.

Cumani explained in Dubai recently that Presvis was short of his best in December when third to Vision D'Etat but he expects him to be on song for the QE II Cup.

Although only 11th in the Dubai Duty Free on World Cup night, Presvis was never out of trouble last start.

(from www.racing.scmp.com)

Lightly raced three-year-old Mr Vigorous has yet to finish in the placings since arriving, but that can change in style tonight at Happy Valley in the Hong Kong Football Club Centenary Challenge Cup (1,200m). The Peter Ho Leung-trained youngster arrived with a record of three seconds from four starts in his native Ireland, so he remains a maiden anywhere at this stage.

Mr Vigorous (Ben So Tik-hung) has shown enough in his short career in Hong Kong to expect he will make the grade in Class Three and, particularly, at the tricky city track.

He has run twice at the Valley for an eighth to Team Work Douglas Whyte), and an eye-catching fifth to Tai Sing Yeh two runs back and they have been the standout efforts for him so far.

On the back of his run behind Tai Sing Yeh, Mr Vigorous had some support to break through at Sha Tin last time out over 1,400m, but punters would be well advised to ignore that performance.

Not only was it at Sha Tin, where Mr Vigorous has yet to show much at all, So unwisely contested a fast lead and left the colt with nothing to finish the race off and he dropped out tamely.

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The script started to have a more familiar look to it at Sha Tin yesterday as Douglas Whyte cut further into Brett Prebble's jockey championship lead and the street corner tip to be the champion trainer this season, John Size, saddled up four winners to open a gap at the head of the ladder for the first time. The Dream Team of Size and Whyte combined with Dr Win, The Rifle and You Gotta Pay, while Zac Purton got into the act with Shining Victory in the day's featured Kowloon Tong Club Challenge Cup (1,000m), reports the Racing Post in HK (www.racing.scmp.com).

"It isn't often you can say that drawing a low number at the start up the straight is any advantage but it was today," Purton said. "While there were quite a few others getting hemmed in or in each other's way further out on the track, where you'd normally prefer to be, I was able to make my move whenever I wanted to."

One race later, You Gotta Pay took Size five clear in the championship over Tony Cruz (42 wins), while the five-times champion trainer might have an Achilles heel in the number of victories he has at Happy Valley, the city course is getting plenty of credit lately for some of his Sha Tin wins. Yesterday, it was the turn of inexperienced three-year-old Dr Win and the disappointing year-older The Rifle, who had come back to the bigger track at Sha Tin with an improved focus on their racing.

"Dr Win got to the rail at Happy Valley in his first race and it got tight and many of the new horses there do get claustrophobic with speed on and turning sharply," Size agreed. "But coming to the bigger track, Douglas used his speed to go to the front and the horse himself travels kindly and saves his energy for the last 200m."

The Rifle finally broke through for a first victory that Size and Whyte both expected much earlier than start number 11, but perhaps his disappointing form also took a contribution from being tried at longer trips than the 1,200m yesterday.

"He's been weak and timid and maybe I made a bad call saying he wanted further because he's been choking up at the finish of 1,600m, but he has such a huge action and there's so much of him, he indicates he wants the mile," Whyte said. "It looks like he's a dead-set 1,200m horse. He spat the bit out today and quickened up. He looked good, though there wasn't a lot behind him and there wasn't any more in the tank, so I hope the handicapper notes that."

Size also conceded the gelding had raced below expectations, but is "more savvy after a few runs at Happy Valley" leading into the win.

"He seems to have plenty of ability but hasn't produced it before now on the track," Size said. "The draw was difficult on paper but he actually got a great trip and finished off the way we had expected him to before now. He gives the feel of a miler and maybe he'll toughen up again for it later but he is just not as advanced as we hoped six months ago."

You Gotta Pay, on the other hand, has done little wrong and made it three wins and two seconds from five starts in the Choi Hung Handicap (1,400m), despite covering ground.

"He's making steady improvement with racing but can get unbalanced, so he's probably better covering ground than getting in among the field. Obviously as he goes up in class to stronger races, we'll have to fine tune that," Size said.

Whyte's treble sliced one more of his deficit in the jockeys' championship, with Prebble (65 wins) leading by a handy seven victories after managing a double in reply.

From Racing Post (Hong Kong)

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"No, I wasn't standing there watching him come back for the winner's photo and thinking he was my Derby horse," laughs John Size of Brave Kid's debut but the pair will attempt to win not only the classic but a unique place in history today.

Brave Kid has made an extraordinary passage from winning that 1,000m Class Four debut at Sha Tin just over three months ago, to being one of the favourites for the HK$16 million Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby. But Derbies come around every year - shooting for seven wins from seven starts, all in the one campaign, now that's once in a lifetime.

Before Brave Kid, 22 horses had won six races in a single season. Only the great River Verdon was able to make the Derby part of that hot streak and none has ever made it seven.

With Darwin, Grand Delight, Armada, More Bountiful and now Brave Kid, Size has managed the winners of six races in a season five times in nine years, more than any other trainer, so he knows as well as anyone the scope of the task to go one step further but is typically upbeat.

"Armada was unbeaten in his six races, so maybe he could have done it, but he ran out of season. He wasn't a horse you could race often, not as robust as Brave Kid," he recalls. "Needing space between his runs, Armada won his sixth in the last race of the last day of the season, so he never got the chance. With four months of this season still to go, you'd have to think Brave Kid will get his opportunity to make it seven, whether it's in the Derby or not."

But Size doesn't see attempting to "do the impossible" in the Derby today as so much harder because it's in that race. "Well, there are a couple of things in his favour. One is that he's come up through the handicaps against all ages and now he switches back to his own age group and he goes to a set-weights race," Size said.

"If he was going for the seventh in a handicap, you always have the chance you run into something that's getting a lot of weight off, maybe a 10-pound claim as well, and then they are just too well handicapped and they'll knock you off.

"I'm not saying the Derby is any soft target, but level weights against his own age? You'd have to think those things are pluses."

RACE 7 - THE QUEEN'S SILVER JUBILEE CUP

Happy Zero (2) has continued his brilliant form this season with straight Group wins sprinting before a solid effort for second behind Good Ba Ba in the HK Mile (Gr.1) and returned off a setback for a third behind Sacred Kingdom over the 1,200m. Fitter over an ideal 1,400m and is a leading chance. Fellowship (3) is enjoying an incredible season with two top wins over a mile, including last month's Stewards Cup (Gr.1) and was a held-up second, beaten a whisker, by Egyptian Ra in October over this trip. He merits respect. Sunny King (5) has come up big in his past four runs after a gear change to just a hood for a win, second and third over this trip and exits a terrific second behind Sacred Kingdom in a Group One over 1,200m. Veteran Egyptian Ra (1) has trouble maintaining his speed up to a mile now, but still has yet to have any peers in two runs over the 1,400m this season and remains a pace threat.

RACE 8 - THE MERCEDES-BENZ HONG KONG DERBY

King Dancer (5) appears to have hit top form at the right time following an exciting win in the Derby Trial last month over the 1,800m and will relish the extra 200m. He's one of the main chances in an open race. Super Satin (6) has hit top form this season for four wins up to 1,800m and two seconds - coming up just short by a neck in the Derby Trial and is the choice ride of Douglas Whyte. He'll be hard to keep out of the finish. The unbeaten Brave Kid (3) can make racing history with a seventh straight win this season after chalking up a nice Class One victory last start over the 1,800m off a big weight and Australian Brett Prebble is 'Johnny On The Spot' with this lovely pick-up ride. Beauty Flash (1) made it six wins from eight local starts with an easy front-running success in the Classic Mile two starts back before a handy third in the Derby Trial and remains a pace threat.

(from Hong Kong Jockey Club)

The CSL Million Challenge winds down to its thrilling conclusion in the Kwai Fong Handicap (1,200m) at Happy Valley tonight and the Manfred Man Ka-leung-trained Tai Sing Yeh is out of contention, but that should only finish all the more nail-biting. Tai Sing Yeh (Brett Prebble) has been the best horse to come through the six-month series for Class Three horses and above this season, but he won't be the winner of it as even maximum points in the finale won't be sufficient.

The three-year-old has 34 points, 19 behind Loyal Army, who sits in the driver's seat and with only 15 available this evening - but Tai Sing Yeh still looks the standout in the race that could make minor points, yet prove the deciding factor for the Million Challenge. Five horses engaged this time can win the series: Norman Invader, who must win race six to have any chance; Strawberry, in the same boat in the seventh; and Loyal Army, Good Strike and Nugget Warrior are all engaged in the last race.

Should Loyal Army (Andreas Suborics) win, then there is nothing to discuss but, if Tai Sing Yeh wins as is expected of short-priced favourites, things will be far more interesting if Norman Invader or Strawberry happened to win earlier.

If Tai Sing Yeh goes over, then the equations open up, but even from an awkward draw in barrier 10 he looks the winner.

A horse destined for better things, the son of Not A Single Doubt failed to overcome a difficult gate last time when he protested successfully to wind up third to El Zonda, but that was over 1,000m.

Ultimately, when he ventures across to Sha Tin, Tai Sing Yeh might find himself well suited by 1,400m, so the drop last time to the minimum trip - unavoidable for Man if he was to have had a shot at the Million Challenge with the horse - wasn't the perfect recipe.

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Trainer Paul O'Sullivan has had a stellar start to the new calendar year with a major victory in the Group One Stewards' Cup last month and the winning haul can continue with Napa II in the 18 Districts Cup - the final leg of Sunday's Triple Trio at Sha Tin. Napa II has been a good flag bearer for the stable since stepping out last April, winning once and placing twice in his first season of racing, and has maintained his consistency in five runs this campaign.

He made a winning return off a big weight in Class Four over the 1,400m on October 17, before making a sound bid late for a third and a second respectively behind smart Algarve over the 1,600m in this grade.

With Algarve out of the way, the four-year-old ran down My Goal to taste victory again on New Year's Day over the 1,600m.

O'Sullivan then stepped him up to 2,000m for the first time. He was caught behind a wall of horses at the head of the straight before finding daylight 300m out to run on strongly late for fourth behind Lhojong.

The son of Red Ransom should be suited to the 1,800m and looks the logical banker from gate one.

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The last month must feel like one of the longest in jockey Darren Beadman's celebrated career - after the champion Australian raised the bat for a half-century of outs yesterday. It has been a frustrating start to the year for both Beadman and trainer John Moore, who have had a string of recent placings without getting a drought breaker since their last win 53 runs ago with Lucky Amore on January 6, reports the HK Racing Post.

It says: The duo have combined for 17 placings since then and to rub salt into the wound had to submit to two more narrow defeats late on the card - Elegance Desire finishing a short head second to the Danny Shum Chap-shing-trained, and ironically named, Cheerful City in the last.

Shum, however, deserved to be cheerful after successfully bringing his galloper back from some fetlock troubles.

"The owner bought this horse himself and according to his pedigree he was always going to be able to get more distance, but unfortunately an injury to his fetlock has meant we have had to keep him to the sprint distances at Happy Valley recently," Shum said.

"We decided to try him over further with the blinkers off and he was able to perform much better."

Beadman and Moore's other runner-up, Irish Jig, was bettered by the Almond Lee Yee-tat-trained Ole Ole, who lobbed at odds of $873.50 with just 105 pounds and apprentice rider Ben So Tik-hung on his back.

"I have to give all the credit for the win to the weight," Lee said. "The horse has not been reliable and he's only a small horse so his future might be limited. But maybe he will be like Top Honor, who I trained before. He was disappointing until he found the dirt.

From racing.scmp.com

The "Kings of Happy Valley" - jockey Brett Prebble and trainer Caspar Fownes - continued their dominance of the midweek meetings by each securing yet another winning treble at Wednesday night's meeting. Fownes and Prebble combined for a winning double with Victory Mascot and O'Reilly Magic - while each claimed separate wins to each rack up a three-timer.

"King of the Valley is not a tag I want, I want to win the big races at Sha Tin as well, but it's always great to win any race and I was very confident I was on some good chances tonight," Prebble said.

Prebble had already won on Country Magic for trainer Tony Cruz before he combined with Fownes to win on O'Reilly's Magic and Victory Mascot.

"Brett rode O'Reilly's Magic exactly how I wanted him ridden, Victory Mascot was just too good tonight and is always very honest," Fownes said.

"Victory Mascot is well suited by the 2,200 metre races at the Valley, but he can run a good race over the shorter distances as long as he gets a strong early tempo. O'Reilly's Magic has a terrific owner who has been very patient, and that has really been the making of the horse - now we can reap the rewards."

Fownes secured the third win of his treble with Dumbarton Rock, who was too tough for his rivals over the 1,650m of the Chater Handicap and was driven to a gutsy victory by Douglas Whyte.

Country Magic was a late pick-up ride for Prebble, after suspended jockey Marco Chui Kwan-Lai had to forfeit the booking owing to a positive result from a urine sample taken after last week's Valley meeting.

Prebble used every bit of his strength to lift the Tony Cruz-trained gelding to a narrow victory over Destiny's Child and Season Linkz to claim the Edinburgh Handicap (1,200m) by a head.

Chui's punishment - whatever the result of his B sample - has already begun to increase, as the rider also missed out on claiming a winning double on the Cruz-trained stablemate, El Zonda, who saluted later in the programme with Jeff Lloyd in the saddle.

from RACING POST (www.racing.scmp.com)

Trainer Sean Woods didn't mix words when he sent Johan Victoire out to give Diamond Knight a strong gallop at yesterday's Sha Tin barrier trials - and the gelding responded, leading throughout to win the second heat by four lengths in a time of 61.10 seconds. Despite the winner being given some serious fitness work, it was the David Hall-trained Merry Way who caught the eye as he cruised to an easy striding second with Brett Prebble in the saddle.

Merry Way moved strongly into the 1,050m trial on the all-weather track upon entering the straight and began cutting into the tiring leader's margin in the final furlong without a great deal of pressure.

One of the lowest rated horses in training, Magic Practitioner, who boasts the unenviable rating of 10, was ridden hard along the rails to finish a respectable fourth, six lengths behind the winner, who is rated at 78, and two behind Merry Way, who sits on the benchmark of 74.

Magic Practitioner's new trainer, Peter Ho Leung, may be considering taking a different tack with the Perugino four-year-old in the near future after his previous handler, Me Tsui Yu-sak, exhausted a host of gear changes in a bid to improve his results.

Magic Practitioner has yet to be tried under race conditions on the dirt, but this blow-out may convince his trainer to switch to this surface in a final effort to save the horse from an early retirement. Manfred Man Ka-Leung's Electronic Master appeased stewards and gained the all-clear to return to racing by finishing third after he was withdrawn at his latest start when he became fractious in the barriers.

Man also had Moonglow passed fit to return to action in the first heat, which was taken out by Berio, who completed his 1,050m assignment in a time of 61.39 seconds under the guidance of Douglas Whyte.

Brett Prebble has become this season's "King of Happy Valley" and can further cement his place on the throne with a full book of rides at tonight's meeting. Prebble has ridden 20 winners at the city track - almost double that of his nearest rival, apprentice Keith Yeung Ming-lun (11 wins) - and that statistic stands him in good stead.

Prebble has been listed a $2.80 favourite in early betting, and should be able to topple in-form Douglas Whyte ($4), who stole the show at Sha Tin on Sunday with four winners.

Interestingly, Yeung may be an outside chance at $17 as one of Prebble's few threats, but with Whyte and Yeung only boasting six rides each, both will need to score heavily with their main chances to be any hope.

Kingston Temple and Glorious Giant have claims for Prebble in the first two races, while Master Rio looks a standout for the Australian in race three.

From there, Unique Speed and Bolero will need some expert guidance from wide gates but, given the way Prebble has been steering them around the Valley of late, you wouldn't want to bet against that happening.

Flying In is a major chance in the Cameron Handicap, while last-start winner Vanquish Delight will take a power of beating in the Police Cup.

Double Luck can end the night on a high for Prebble, who has won the previous two Happy Valley Jockey Challenges and looks likely to chalk up a hat-trick.

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Tony Cruz's newly gelded St Fevre made a better impression at yesterday's Sha Tin barrier trials than in his Hong Kong debut when the then Dehere colt tailed off last on November 22.

He had a tough run on the speed in his debut and was later found to have substantial blood in the trachea.

St Fevre had a busy run in the early stages, settling second last, improving around the outside to third, before being turned back to the inside by Matthew Chadwick to find the lead. He peeled away in the straight to win the 1,050m all-weather heat by over three lengths in a time of 62.56 seconds.

St Fevre won as a two-year-old in New Zealand, before finishing second to The Heckler in the Group One Sire's Produce Stakes (1,400m) and sits on a rating of 87.

The strong performance ensured he was passed fit to return to action, and the three-year-old should make his presence felt when he takes his place next time.

The Me Tsui Yu-sak trained Team Work also caught the eye finishing third, despite finishing 5 1/2 lengths behind St Fevre. He dropped out to the rear with the blinkers on and then made good ground along the rails in the straight, despite his momentum being slowed for a few strides.

The second 1,050m dirt heat was taken out by the Almond Lee Yee-tat trained Leading City, who led throughout in a slower time of 64.07 seconds.

Ka Ka's Prosperity made appeal with his easy striding effort down the centre of the course to finish third. He is entered for Saturday's Sha Tin meeting where he will tackle the Class Three Canarvon Handicap (1,400m) at his second start.

The grey took a long time to settle at his Happy Valley debut on December 9 and was caught too far back upon straightening to be a threat over the 1,200m.

It should be noted both horses who trialled last Tuesday and were presented at the races on Sunday - Healthy Blueberry and Cerise Cherry - performed admirably for strong placings.

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There was a sense of deja vu at Sha Tin on Sunday as John Size reeled off his sixth treble there in as many weeks and ended yesterday with the "D" word bandied about for unbeaten Brave Kid.

The Dream Team of Size and champion jockey Douglas Whyte strung together victories with hotpots National Treasure, Presto and Brave Kid on an afternoon that rained favourites, but it was the almost four-length margin for Brave Kid that had Size watering down any talk of the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby.

"He's an entry for the race - a lot of horses are - but at this stage that is not the plan," Size said.

"The plan is to keep trying to find races that Brave Kid can win. If he is able to keep winning and going up the ratings to the point where it makes some sense to look at a race like the Derby, then we can, but we'll wait and see. He won with a 70-rating today so it's a way off."

Both Size and Whyte pointed out that, in contrast to four-year-old's narrow victory under difficulties last time, nothing at all went wrong for him this time from a good draw.

"Off a bad draw last run, he raced fiercely down the back early. From a good gate, Brave Kid got cover early, settled quicker and therefore put more into his finish today," said Size.

Yet indications are already that Brave Kid will handle further than the 1,400m and Whyte said the gelding was deceptively strong once in front.

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Jockey Club officials again did a poor job of concealing their mirth as turnover all but touched the rare billion dollar barrier on the mixed all-weather and turf card. The pari-mutuel handle fell just over HK$6 million short of a billion - up by over HK$78 million on last year's meeting - but the bigger story was that the boost of Jockey Challenge betting more than tipped it over the edge.

Yesterday's Challenge attracted a record hold before the meeting began, and then a record in-play handle as well, with a total of around HK$11 million bet on the jockey honours by the time it closed.

"It was really fantastic and I'm sure that the turnover was helped by having our top three jockeys on the table, Brett Prebble, Matthew Chadwick and Douglas Whyte see-sawing for the lead and favouritism in the early races," said chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges.

Prebble had been $3.50 before running right away with the first on Fortune Dragon in a result that saw him shorten to $1.90 favouritism before Chadwick hit back with the next two races to go favourite, then the overnight odds-on favourite, Whyte, put the game to bed in the back half of the programme with a treble.

Prebble said he was unaware that cellar-dweller Fortune Dragon was running away with the Class Five by almost five lengths - which will surely earn him a big ratings hike.

"Put it this way - I kept him going because he didn't feel like he was finding the line that strongly," Prebble said.

"I think the margin was flattered by the other Class Fivers not getting to the line or just giving up.

"Plenty of them do." (www.racing.scmp.com)

The Untouchablelad has been knocking on the door and gets a golden opportunity to breakthrough over a suitable 1,650-metre journey in a tricky opening leg of tomorrow night's Happy Valley Triple Trio, estimated at HK$3 million.

The New Zealand-bred three-year-old was never a factor when stepping out for his debut at Sha Tin in mid-November, but took the bull by the horns in two 1,200m runs last month at Happy Valley - coming from well back with a strong final 400 metres in 23.04 for third behind Megabucks and Asian Citrus at 70-1 odds, before making another swift 22.55 sectional from near last down the outside with a visor for third again behind Perfect Gear and Just Chill.

A son of Monolith and the Lord Ballina-mare Kilmaghenny, The Untouchablelad is a half brother to Royal Admiral, a winner of the Group Two Singapore Queen Elizabeth II Cup over 2,000m in 2007, and will be suited perfectly to this trip.

Trainer Peter Ho Leung has taken the visor off him this time, but he should be toppling them all late for regular rider Alex Lai Hoi-wing.

Leo's Pride defied an outside gate to break his duck last month over this course and distance and has top apprentice Matthew Chadwick's claim to compensate for a six-point penalty.

He can play a dual banker role from a good gate, while in-form Bobo Win, Absolute Hedge, Baby Wave, Fortune Warrior, Tremendous Plus, Amityship and Implied Volatility are possible place chances.

In the middle leg, Something Special looks a standout. The five-year-old finished a close second over this course and distance in mid-October, then struck a difficult run over the 2,200m, before a rallying third last start behind Spinnaker at Sha Tin.

Olympicship has hit a purple patch of form with placings since being moved to the city course and should be in the firing line.

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