LUCRATIVE PAYDAY AWAITS AUSTRALIAN HORSE OF THE YEAR IN HONKERS
A LUCRATIVE payday awaits reigning Australian Horse of the Year Scenic Blast if he can upstage the world’s best sprinters in Hong Kong on Sunday.
The Western Australian champion will claim a $US1 million bonus if he can prove triumphant in the $US1.55m Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Sprint (1200m) at Sha Tin.
Read more: SCENIC BLAST chasing $US1 million bonus in Hong Kong
MEDIA SPOTLIGHT ON CANADIAN LASS WHEN TOP JOCKEYS STEP OUT
CANADA'S Chantal Sutherland stole the show when the riders competing in the 2009 Cathay Pacific International Jockeys’ Championship were presented to the media at Happy Valley on Tuesday afternoon.
Sutherland, the jockey who also works as a model, had a raft of frenzied photographers clicking their cameras as she upstaged local superstars Douglas Whyte, Matthew Chadwick and Howard Cheng as well as other high profile international jockeys.
Read more: STAGE set for International Jockeys' Championship in Hong Kong
WHEN it comes to ‘junkets’ for the racing media the Hong Kong Jockey Club wins hands down with its spectacular Cathay Pacific International Week each December.
They say there is no such thing as a free lunch but in horse racing this could well be the exception – just ask those who partake of the annual Honkers media package.
Read more: HONKERS WINS HANDS DOWN WHEN IT COMES TO MEDIA JUNKETS - IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR AGAIN
INTRIGUING CLASH LOOMS BETWEEN SOME OF WORLD'S BEST YOUNG RIDERS
MONDAY morning's allocation of jockeys for the Cathay Pacific International Jockeys' Championship helped reinforce the notion that race fans are in for an intriguing clash between some of the world's best young riders against the more established order at Happy Valley on Wednesday night.
For example, two of the riders on the evening are teenagers - Joe Talamo from the United States and Hong Kong's champion apprentice Matthew Chadwick.
Read more: CHADWICK rides for Hong Kong and Australia in International Challenge
LEADING contenders for the big Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Day on Sunday have been going through the final paces on the track at Sha Tin.
Here are some of the comments from those connected with the stars that will perform at one of the most important meetings in world racing.
Read more: HOW the stars fared in preparation for Hong Kong International Day
KIEREN FALLON, the six-time champion jockey in Britain, will return to Hong Kong with three great rides in the Cathay Pacific International Races at Sha Tin on 13 December.
Fallon, who last won the jockey's title in 2003, returned to action this September following an 18-month riding suspension.
Read more: CHAMPION British jockey fancies his chances at Hong Kong International
SYDNEY trainer Grahame Begg is no stranger to Hong Kong. Nor is his leading Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint contender, All Silent, whose withering late sprint could well carry him to victory on 13 December.
Begg came to Hong Kong in 1995 and 1996 with Monopolize to win the Hong Kong International Bowl, the forerunner to the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Mile.
Read more: ALL SILENT returns to Hong Kong for International meeting
CHAMPION MARE TOAST OF JAPAN AFTER COURAGEOUS CUP WIN
IT was close, but Vodka did not disappoint her fans this time.
Vodka on Sunday finally lifted the Japan Cup in her third try as trainer Katsuhiko Sumii’s superstar won the 29th running of the 2,400m race at Tokyo Racecourse in a photo finish over Oken Bruce Lee.
Read more: VODKA likely to be retired after narrow win in JAPAN CUP
FRESH FACES TO TACKLE ESTABLISHED STARS IN HK JOCKEYS' SERIES
RISING stars of the future will do battle with some of the most established jockeys from around the globe in the Cathay Pacific International Jockeys’ Championship at Happy Valley on Wednesday, December 9.The only former series winner in this year’s cast is Douglas Whyte who has won the title on a record three occasions (2002, 2007 and 2008), while four invitees will negotiate the unique Happy Valley circuit for the first time.
Read more: INVITES for International Jockeys' Championship in Hong Kong
FOUR GROUP 1 RACES TO BE CONTESTED BY 35 INTERNATIONAL RUNNERS
SHA TIN will be the stage for the international racing elite to play out the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Races on Sunday, December 13.
Four Group 1 races, worth a combined HK$62m (approx. US$8m) in stakes, have lured 34 international runners to join 19 of the very best from Hong Kong.
Read more: SELECTED runners for Hong Kong International Race Day