Ricky Yiu Poon-fai will decide later this week if Voyage Bubble tackles June’s Group One Yasuda Kinen (1,600m) in Japan.

Third behind Beauty Eternal in Sunday’s Group One Champions Mile, Voyage Bubble could find himself locking horns with Romantic Warrior on June 2.

“He’s pulled up fine, 100 per cent. We will make a decision in the next few days. His run on Sunday was OK – the track condition wasn’t really suitable for him,” said Yiu.

“It would be very interesting because Romantic Warrior’s best trip is probably 1,800m plus. The mile might be on the sharp side for him.”

Danny Shum Chap-shing will also decide in the coming days whether Romantic Warrior heads for a spell, the Yasuda Kinen or the Group One Takarazuka Kinen (2,200m), also in Japan, three weeks later.

One horse who won’t be travelling this season is Sunday’s Group One Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1,200m) runner-up California Spangle, with trainer Tony Cruz mulling over whether to tackle the Group Three Sha Tin Vase (1,200m) or Group Three Premier Cup (1,400m) in June, or call an end to his superstar’s campaign.

“The horse pulled up well. I’m very happy with him but I haven’t decided whether he should run again because he’s going to give a big weight away. He’s definitely not travelling – no Ascot, no Japan,” Cruz confirmed.

Cruz will back Five G Patch up in this weekend’s Group Three Queen Mother Memorial Cup (2,400m) after his solid Group One QE II Cup (2,000m) sixth behind Romantic Warrior on the weekend.

Five G Patch is one of 12 entries for the second of only three 12-furlong contests on the Hong Kong programme, with Group One star Russian Emperor the clear top rater and Hong Kong Derby trio Chill Chibi, Ka Ying Generation and Unbelievable also nominated.

Bush to depart

Jockey Club steward Gerard Bush will return to Australia at the end of the season, with the esteemed stipe to take up a role with Racing and Wagering Western Australia.

Bush, who has been at the Jockey Club since 2015, will be replaced by Troy Vassallo, who will begin his new role at the start of the 2024-25 season after finishing up as the chief stipendiary steward with the NSW Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission.

Bush’s departure comes little over 12 months after the retirement of long-standing chief steward Kim Kelly, who was replaced by Marc van Gestel last year.

Permit applications ‘a good result’

The Jockey Club released the final figures for its 2024 horse ballot on Monday, with total applications for permits for the 2024-25 season down 6.42 per cent.

But, after recently announcing a HK$140 million investment in lowering the cost of horse ownership, club officials are happy with the level of interest shown by prospective buyers.

“The number of applications in the 2024 horse ballot is a good result,” said Jockey Club executive director of racing Andrew Harding.

“While the total number of applications is down 6 per cent, this was expected given the current economic climate.

Bowman turns attention to Happy Valley after Group One glory on Champions Day

“It is noteworthy that the number of Private Purchase [previously raced horses] applications is the highest in four seasons, and this is a strong endorsement of the club’s strategies to encourage and support owners to import these horses, including the changes we have made to import ratings and the investment in PP bonuses.

“The smaller number of Private Purchase Griffin [previously unraced horses] applications is in part a consequence of measures that were taken to support the horse population post-Covid, in particular the large number of promotions from the reserve list.”

There were 174 applications received for the 100 available PP permits, up from 168 last year, and 525 applications for the 340 PPG permits, down from 579 12 months ago.

In other Jockey Club news, a bizarrely timed press release hours after the final race of Sunday’s Champions Day meeting confirmed the Group One Hong Kong Cup (2,000m) will now be worth HK$40 million and the Group One Hong Kong Mile HK$36 million.