Ricky Yiu believes emerging talent Sunlight Power can continue a sharp rise and eventually join the city’s elite after the gelding’s stunning win at Sha Tin on Sunday as Zac Purton dominated the meeting with a quartet.
Ridden by Jerry Chau, Sunlight Power travelled three-wide before surging clear of his rivals to win by two lengths and easing down before the line to notch his fourth win from 15 starts.
The authority of the performance fuelled the wily Yiu’s hopes he has another quality galloper on his hands.
Clocking 1:21.17, 74-rater Sunlight Power will be next aimed at Class 2 contests before Yiu considers even loftier targets after shouldering 129lb with ease today.
“I wish I could tell you how good he can be, but I’m aiming high. I think he can get to over 100 (in the ratings) but I can’t tell you how high he can go because he keeps on improving,” Yiu said.
Notching his second four-timer from only three meetings so far this season, Purton scored aboard Chris So-trained duo Devas Twelve and Super Win Dragon, Mark Newnham’s Super Infinity and David Hall’s Charmander.
With nine wins from 24 rides, Purton boosted his Hong Kong career haul to 1,749, leaving the Australian only 64 victories shy of 13-time champion Douglas Whyte’s record of 1,813.
“It’s a good way to start the season. I’m pushing for a little bit more support out there if I can get it. So, hopefully the other trainers want to train a few winners as well and we can work together,” he said.
Purton, 41, figured in two running doubles – the first aboard Super Infinity and Charmanderer.
Newnham was delighted with the performance of Super Infinity, a son of Star Witness.
“He’s still not a finished product, but good enough to win today,” Newnham said. “I think at the moment, I’ll just hold him back to 1200 (metres). He’s not doing enough right yet, I think, to step up.
“Even today, Zac had to sort of force him into a position, which was good for today and to get the job done, but I think as he matures and gets another couple of starts under his belt, he’s probably a horse who’s a better chaser.”
With four wins across three meetings, Newnham has laid the foundations for another strong campaign.
“I’m very happy. We’ve got some quite nice horses like this horse that weren’t over-exposed last season so they’ve got wins in them,” he said.
Purton provided Hall with the first leg of a stable double atop Charmander before combining with Harry Bentley and Mr Energia.
“He’s (Mr Energia) always shown ability but he hadn’t shown that ability in races, but the blinkers have transformed him,” Hall said of the Swiss Ace gelding who finished fifth in a Sha Tin 1050m trial on 3 September.
Purton linked up with So in consecutive races, scoring on Devas Twelve before Super Win Dragon posted his fifth course and distance triumph.
“He (Devas Twelve) did a nice job last season as a young horse, he progressed with every run and got that win and then he went over the top – he’d had enough and then he got a break during the off-season and he’s come back a better horse,” Purton said.
“He raced against his normal pattern today and still got the job done at his first start this season. He did a good job.”
Magic Control became the first horse this season to claim a PP Bonus of HK$1.5 million when the former Australian sprinter dominated from the front under Matthew Chadwick for Cody Mo.
Clocking 55.74s over the straight course, the Sioux Nation gelding lived up the reputation he created in Australia where he was a three-time winner for Matt Laurie when known as Archo Nacho. The gelding’s best Australian victory came in the Group 3 Red Anchor Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley in October.
“It’s nice to achieve the first winner of the season and this is a great horse to get it with. You could see from his win overseas that he’s a very good horse. Even in his latest trial he went very easily with Ka Ying Rising, who is a Group winner. He just followed him nicely without too much pressure and kept going,” Mo said.
Family Jewel provided Caspar Fownes with his first win of the campaign with victory under Hugh Bowman. Setting a new class record of 1:33.70, the Time Test gelding impressed Fownes.
“I’m very happy to see that, it was a good effort. I’m surprised they ran that time and the track is very hard but he handled it well. He ran very well last start and he was unlucky,” Fownes said. “I think this horse is quite nice so hopefully he can continue to improve.”
Pierre Ng, runner-up in last season’s trainers’ championship, matched So and Hall’s feat in slotting doubles. Ng notched his first victory of the term with Gale Saga, who gave Matthew Poon his fourth win of the season, and then struck again with Team Happy under a positive ride from Angus Chung.
“Very happy with the double. It seems a little bit late but it’s a good start to the season and hopefully we can keep going to the end again,” Ng said.
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