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Pick Pony | Sept. 9, 2024, 2:28 p.m.
Over the weekend, horse racing events around the world grabbed attention as the European season began to slow down. In Korea, two Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" heats took place. Meanwhile, Hong Kong resumed racing, and both England and France hosted Group 1 events with implications for year-end rankings and assignments.
England
Montassib and Kind of Blue were the top finishers in Saturday's Group 1 Betfair Sprint Cup at Haydock. Montassib, ridden by jockey Cieren Fallon and trained by William Haggis, won by a head after emerging from the pack in the final furlong. Unequal Love finished in third place as a long shot.
The 6-year-old Exceed and Excel gelding, Montassib, had previously won a Group 3 race on the Newcastle all-weather course and was competing in his first Group 1 race.
Trainer William Haggis mentioned that Montassib's next race could be the Group 1 Sprint on Champions Day next month. Given the inconsistent form in the division, Montassib might be favored in that race.
Korea
On Korea's biggest race day Saturday, Japanese horses finished first and second in both of the major international races, earning berths in Breeders' Cup races. The American contender, Anarchist, finished third in the Group 3 Korea Sprint, coming in 8 lengths behind the winner. The favorite, Remake, won the race, defending last year's victory. The 5-year-old son of Lani had previously finished fourth in the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen and, under jockey Yuga Kawada, won by 2 lengths, earning an invitation to the Breeders' Cup Sprint in November. In the Group 3 Korea Cup, Crown Pride was the winner, finishing 5 lengths ahead of the runner-up, Wilson Tesoro. Crown Pride, a 5-year-old by Reach the Crown, has a ticket to the Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile after six wins and four seconds from 16 starts around the world.
France
In the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp on Sunday, Tribalist, a 5-year-old horse trained by Andre Fabre, surprised many by winning the race. Notable Speech, the favorite, finished fifth. Tribalist was ridden by Mickael Barzalona and won by 1 1/4 lengths from Charyn, with Henry Longfellow coming in third. Despite a ninth-place finish in July, Tribalist's recent win was a comeback after a two-month break. Fabre mentioned the possibility of Tribalist racing overseas again, following a disappointing performance in the Group 1 Longines Hong Kong Mile last December.
"Nowadays, there are no other options than to go for the Foret next. Then we'll look at the Breeders' Cup," Racing Post quoted Fabre as saying.
Hong Kong
The 2024-25 season in Hong Kong is off to a great start. Despite enduring Super Typhoon Yagi in the previous days, 42,566 fans showed up at Sha Tin Racecourse to witness an historic performance by Ka Ying Rising. The 4-year-old horse carried a record 135 pounds to victory in the feature race, the Class 1 HKSAR Chief Executive's Cup Handicap, winning by 1 1/4 lengths over Beauty Waves, who was carrying 115 pounds due to the handicap conditions.
"I was very nervous because common sense said a young horse carrying 135 pounds in testing conditions and giving a lot of good horses weight couldn't win," winning trainer said. "But he did it brilliantly, and I'm so proud of him. He's a bit special, isn't he?"
Ka Ying Rising is pointed to some of Hong Kong's biggest races this season, so we'll see. The last two winners, Victor the Winner and Lucky Sweynesse, went on to Group 1 glory.
Winning rider Zac Purton, however, already has built a big lead as he chases his eighth jockey championship. He won four on the program, including the opener.
"The last time I won the first race of the season, I broke the record for most number of wins [179 in 2022-23] in a season. So let's hope history repeats," Purton said.