Sunday's latest round of international trials consigned two track records to history, including the one that seemed most impregnable. Never before has such searing speed been witnessed at Sha Tin.
Co-Tack's mile standard of 1 min 33.3 sec dating back to 1983 had barely been threatened in recent years, but from right of the blue it has been bested and now belongs to Down Town, winner of the Sha Tin Trophy (Gr.3) by one length in a time of 1 min 33.1 sec.
An hour earlier, Royal Delight shaved one-tenth of a second off the previous record for 1200m in the Premier Bowl (Gr.3) to establish a new mark of 1 min 7.6 sec.
With the likes of Egyptian Ra, Sir Ernesto and The Duke and Down Town in the line-up, the early speed in the Sha Tin Trophy was expected to be fast and furious. Opening sectionals of 23.8 sec and 22.8 sec did not disappoint as Down Town, trained by Dennis Yip, held fourth position under champion jockey Douglas Whyte down the back straight.
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Soon the grey son of Scenic powered to the fore off the final turn and led with 250m to race. While the expected charge from the rear materialized, Down Town kept roaring clear for a length success at the line from the fast-finishing Good Ba Ba.
"He's been the most honest and consistent horse to have been involved with" and before the race Douglas said he was confident of a big run "so I felt we might have a place chance. But I could never have dreamt of anything like that – not to win it so well by a length from such a strong field and in track record time. That's something really amazing," Yip smiled.
"I had not decided before what race he should next target. I had him in mind for the Cathay Pacific International Mile Trial and the Sprint Trial but after that performance I think trying for the Mile Trial is the more likely."
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A distinct sense of deja vu surrounded the aftermath to Premier Bowl (Gr.3-1200m) won by Royal Delight to give champion trainer Caspar Fownes the 200th victory of his still young career.
Last year the previously unheralded Absolute Champion sprung a surprise from a lightweight in track record time for the 1200m. Mirroring the achievement a season later, Royal Delight popped up at odds of over 20/1 from the bottom of the handicap in a record time from Sunny Power. The odds-on favourite Medic Power ran third, just ahead of the world's top-ranked sprinter Absolute Champion in fourth.
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Fownes said Royal Delight is likely to take the same route as Absolute Champion took last year to the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint and bypass next month's final prep, the Cathay Pacific International Sprint Trial.
"He's best fresh so he'll probably go straight to the international race – that's if he's selected, of course!"
Winning jockey Shane Dye was instrumental in recommending Royal Delight to owner Peter Law Kin-sang and the five-year-old arrived in Hong Kong two seasons ago with a tall reputation from Sydney where he raced as War Of The Worlds. A chipped left fore knee halted his progress midway through his second campaign, however, and he was switched to the Fownes team.
"His run first up after knee surgery was good and we
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thought he could run well. But to win in a course record time from a superstar like Medic Power is... well, more than a pleasant surprise."
"We put the blinkers back on him and Shane gave him a ten out of ten ride to sit outside the leader and go for home at the 300m," Fownes added.
今天（11月21日）下午在沙田馬場舉行的兩場三級賽中，產生了兩項途程新紀錄。由葉楚航訓練的「紙醉金迷」，打破八十年代馬王「同德」保持了二十四年的草地1600米紀錄，摘下沙田錦標；方嘉柏馬房的「喜皇寶」亦刷新「無敵神駒」所保持的草地1200米紀錄，捧走精英碗。
是日賽事在好至快地上進行。沙田錦標在第九場上演，「紙醉金迷」在韋達胯下沿途居於領放馬後面的前列有利位置，入直路後發力，一攻而破，以一又四分一馬位的優勢率先過終點，締速分33秒1。
「同德」於1983年11月6日在快地上締造的1分33秒3沙田草地千六米紀錄，於保持將近二十四年後，終於被打破。
杜利萊策騎的「好爸爸」，以一個馬鼻位力壓薄奇能主轡的「再領風騷」，獲得亞軍。湯智傑執韁的「勝利飛駒」得第四。這四匹馬俱已報名角逐今年十二月九日舉行的國泰航空香港國際賽事。
葉楚航說：「賽前我有信心『紙醉金迷』可入三甲，但沒想到贏得如此輕鬆。韋達賽前則充滿信心，而陣上的跑法及走位一如他事前所料。事實上，韋達上次策騎此駒跑了一場後，對馬兒更為了解。今仗賽後如情況良好，『紙醉金迷』下一仗將會出爭11月17日的國泰航空香港一哩錦標預賽。」
精英碗在第七場舉行，由戴勝策騎的「喜皇寶」，沿途走二疊穩守第二位，直路發力越過領放的「電光火力」，直趨終點。一個馬位後，鄭雨滇力策「陽光」奪得亞席。再四分三個馬位後，大熱門「無敵神駒」在柏寶胯下得季軍。第四名是此項錦標上屆盟主「騏綵」。這四匹短途精英俱已報名出戰十二月的國泰航空香港國際賽事。
實負114磅的「喜皇寶」，締下1分7秒6，比「無敵神駒」在今年5
月24日創出的1
分7秒7沙田千二米場地紀錄快十分之一秒。
憑「喜皇寶」取得從練第二百場頭馬的方嘉柏說：「『喜皇寶』做了膝部手術後，復出首仗跑得不錯，所以今仗賽前我們估計牠會交出好表現，但能夠以破紀錄時速掄元則屬意外的驚喜。這匹馬跑新鮮最好，所以下一個目標將會直指國泰航空香港短途錦標。」
