RVL Chief Handicapper Greg Carpenter is staying loyal to the Aussie gallopers and has selected All Silent to beat the world class field in Sunday’s $1.8 million Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint at Sha Tin.

Handicappers do not usually publicly announce their tips but the International Handicappers’ Conference held at Sha Tin today (Friday) is an exception.

Handicappers from all the countries involved in the four international races on Sunday share their views on the likely outcomes and it was hardly surprising Carpenter should tip an Australian victory in the Hong Kong Sprint considering the calibre of the three runners – All Silent, Scenic Blast and Apache Cat.

Although Carpenter said the trio all had winning chances he could not go so far as tipping them to fill the placings, omitting Apache Cat from third in favour of Hong Kong’s champion sprinter Sacred Kingdom who won the race in 2007.

Carpenter has admitted some reservations about All Silent drawing the outside barrier in the field of 14 but believes his style of racing will help him overcome what would otherwise be a major setback in such a strong field.

All Silent ran some amazing sectionals when he came from last to win the Patinack Farm Classic (1200m) at Flemington on 7 November.

Jockey Nick Hall, having his first ride at an international meeting, is not overawed by the prospect and was quite relaxed as he went out to ride All Silent in an easy gallop on the all-weather track this morning.

The last time Hall visited Hong Kong was with his parents as a small child when his father Greg was riding there.

Asked whether he had thought about bringing dad back to support him on this trip, Nick said it was a “toss-up between dad and my girlfriend and my girlfriend won.”

Hall said he realised All Silent would be giving most of the field a start but “I might be able to get in one pair back from last.”

All Silent was very fresh when he went onto the track this morning and looks super keen to get on with the job on Sunday.

Apache Cat cantered on the all-weather track while Scenic Blast had his final gallop on the course proper.

It has been taken for granted that US speedster California Flag will set a cracking pace but it is also generally expected that the flashy grey is likely to run wide on the home turn which might impact on other runners and open up room on the inside.

Australia’s other representative on Sunday is the John O’Shea-trained Racing To Win in the Hong Kong Mile who is at double figure odds in the available pre-post markets.

Local star Good Ba Ba is attempting to become the first horse to win one of the international races three years in a row after his wins in the Mile in 2007-08.

The Hong Kong Cup is being treated as a match between the Luca Cumani-trained Presvis and Collection but the French hopes Vision D’Etat and Ashalanda are there to spoil the party.

Over the years, the French horses have had a good record in the Hong Kong International races and they may have an impact again on Sunday.

RACING VICTORIA MEDIA RELEASE

Contact: Shaun Kelly – RVL Communications Manager M: 0417 145 796 P: (03) 9258 4252 E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.