The Year of the Rat will be remembered for all the wrong reasons but the Jockey Club showed how far it has come with the betting turnover from Wednesday night’s Happy Valley meeting reaching HK$1.367 billion (US$176.3 million) – an incredible increase of 37.23 per cent from 12 months ago.
It was last year’s Lunar New Year meeting on January 27 when Covid-19 first made an impact on Hong Kong racing with the Jockey Club forced to bring in crowd limits – which have stayed in place in some shape ever since.
The off-course betting branches also had to be shut amid the fallout from the coronavirus and it cut a swathe through the turnover numbers as customers hadn’t fully transitioned to digital platforms.
But racing fans – and the Jockey Club – have evolved through necessity and that can be seen clearly when juxtaposing Wednesday night’s turnover figures to those from the meeting on February 12 last year.
Macau border restrictions drive Jockey Club’s record betting turnover
On that occasion, there was just HK$996,509,487 invested on the eight-race card and while there were nine contests this time around, a total of HK$1,367,540,804 was bet.
It highlights how customers both within the city and in commingling jurisdictions have adapted to the new conditions and supported the product. The HK$140 million in betting duty delivered to the Hong Kong government shows why racing was able to continue when most other sports were not.
The fact turnover reached that level when only 213 owners were on course, there was persistent drizzle throughout most of the night and the quality of horses running around wasn’t that high is a credit to the Jockey Club and the industry as a whole. It bodes well as we enter the Year of the Ox.
That was easy...
— HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) February 10, 2021
Joao Moreira seals a double as Kurpany bounces back to his best. ️ #HKracing pic.twitter.com/dDu58iI4Oz
In terms of the action on the track, unless you backed a winner there weren’t a lot of highlights.
Championship-leading trainer Caspar Fownes had a double, headlined by the good thing of the night Kurpany in the Class Three Azalea Handicap (1,000m).
After being unlucky last start, Joao Moreira made sure there were no issues this time around, settling Kurpany just behind the leaders before peeling out in the straight to win like a HK$1.70 chance should.
The two had combined earlier with Daily Beauty in the fifth race, ensuring Fownes left the Valley with 43 winners to his name, a lead of four over John Size.
Caspar Fownes maintains slender lead in title fight as Hong Kong racing season hits halfway mark
The Magic Man added a third winner to his tally when he piloted Jimmy Ting Koon-ho’s Equaletta Blitz home in the Class Three Cineraria Handicap (1,200m). Moreira now has 89 victories for the term, 30 in front of Zac Purton.
Trainer Francis Lui Kin-wai had a brace as Dionysus Collin (Vincent Ho Chak-yiu) and Sunny Star (Alexis Badel) collected a race-to-race double.
The former “needs conditions to suit him” – and got exactly that in the Class Four Peony Handicap (1,800m) to record his second win from 28 starts – while the latter still looks to have some upside after running over the top of Wealthy Delight and Royal Bomb in the Class Three Daffodil Handicap (1,650m).
Sunny Star turns the tables on Wealthy Delight in the first of tonight's Class 3 contests, powering clear for @AlexisBadel to land a double for trainer Francis Lui! ️ #HKracing pic.twitter.com/C30nkhINS8
— HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) February 10, 2021
“I’m not saying he’s a good horse, but he’s an honest horse,” Lui said of Sunny Star. “He just turned four and he needs more experience. Last time was his first time here and he still ran well and he was even better this second time.
“He’s still a colt but he’s a quiet horse. I think he can handle a little bit further.”
Brazilian Vagner Borges went home with a double after guiding Danny Shum Chap-shing’s President Star home in the second race before combining with the Paul O’Sullivan-trained Spontaneous in the seventh event.
Vagner Borges points to the sky after winning with Spontaneous.
The Tony Millard-prepared Gallant Crown continued his excellent form at the Happy Valley 1,650m circuit, rattling off his third straight win in the Class Four Peach Blossom Handicap.
Karis Teetan gave him a lovely ride, settling him midfield before running over the top of his rivals in the straight.
