No owner has had more BMW Hong Kong Derby (2,000m) success than Larry Yung Chi-kin and on Sunday the former Citic chairman and his family will get their best chance in 22 years to add to their storied history in Hong Kong’s most sought-after race.
Victorious in 1997 with Oriental Express and 2002 with Olympic Express, Yung will stand alongside his son Andy Yung Ming-tai at Sha Tin as Helios Express looks to complete a Classic Series clean sweep.
“It’s just an honour to be here. My family has a long racing history so I know how big the Derby is,” Andy Yung said after Thursday morning’s barrier draw at Sha Tin.
“It would be huge to win. Absolutely [we’re feeling the pressure]. My dad has always talked about trying to win it for a third time and we’re looking forward to seeing if we can do it.
“He’s super excited. Back then they didn’t have the four-year-old series so another thing we’re really riding on is becoming the third horse to win all three races. That would be a great honour as well.”
While Helios Express is listed under Andy’s name, Sunday’s racing will very much be a family affair for the Yungs – just like it’s always been.
“We’ll all be out here on course and it’s going to be a tremendous honour for the whole family. I’m a young owner, this is my second horse, and to be able to be here is unbelievable,” he said.
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“Ever since I was five or six, every Tuesday and Saturday night – we didn’t have the internet back then – we would have all the newspapers laid out and I would sit on Dad’s lap and we would go through each horse.”
Helios Express is looking to do what the likes of Silver Express, Lucky Express and Eastern Express couldn’t in recent years and deliver the Yungs a long-awaited third Derby victory.
Private purchases strike back?
If he were to triumph on Sunday, Helios Express would become the first private purchase to win the Derby since Furore in 2019 and he’s certainly not the only one with a strong chance.
While the past four Derby winners – Golden Sixty, Sky Darci, Romantic Warrior and Voyage Bubble – all came to Hong Kong unraced, this year’s edition of the HK$26 million feature looks set to be dominated by gallopers who were imported to the city after beginning their careers elsewhere.
Of the top chances, hot favourite Helios Express won his only Australian start, a Benalla maiden, before coming to Hong Kong, Galaxy Patch saluted over 1,100m in Adelaide, Massive Sovereign won two of five starts for the great Aidan O’Brien in Ireland and Ensued was winless from three starts in Britain.
While Helios Express (eight starts), Galaxy Patch (eight) and Ensued (six) have had plenty of time to settle into Hong Kong, Dennis Yip Chor-hong’s Massive Sovereign is looking to become the first horse since 1997 to win the Derby in just his second start in the city.
The last horse to do it? The Yung family’s Oriental Express.
The need for speed
While Massive Sovereign, Ensued and another ex-O’Brien galloper, Unbelievable, bring proven staying qualities after previously posting wins at the Derby distance, it’s sprinter Galaxy Patch who provides perhaps the most interesting angle to the race.
Second in the recent Group One Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup (1,400m), Galaxy Patch has never run over further than 1,400m and will race in the Derby three weeks after finishing fifth over 1,000m.
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While it was more the call of owner Yeung Kin-man than trainer Pierre Ng Pang-chi to attempt to become the first horse to win the Derby off a 1,400m lead-up run since Ping Hai Star in 2018, it certainly won’t be the first time the Ng family have taken aim at the feature with a sprinter.
Ng’s father Peter Ng Bik-kuen was third behind Olympic Express in the 2002 Derby with $37 chance Dashing Winner three weeks after the gelding ran second in a 1,200m Class One.
