2009 GLOBAL SPRINT CHALLENGE FINAL POINTS BOARD

RESULT - 2009 CATHAY PACIFIC HONG KONG SPRINT - G1

1200 m / 6f

8th LEG GLOBAL SPRINT CHALLENGE

TRACK: Good              

Sacred Kingdom maintains local dominance in Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint

   AN OVERJOYED BRETT PREBBLE AFTER GUIDING SACRED KINGDOM TO VICTORY

Sacred Kingdom upheld local dominance in the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint by regaining the title he won so impressively two years ago.

The race widely reckoned to be the best international sprint line-up for many seasons given the presence of so many champions from all over the world ultimately boiled down a local shootout.

The first four past the post this year were trained in Hong Kong and it was the eighth straight season for the winner to be based at Sha Tin.

Ridden by Brett Prebble, Sacred Kingdom took up the running shortly after entering the home straight and had enough in reserve to repel the advances out wide of One World by half a length.

Joy And Fun ran third with Green Birdie fourth. California Flag and Total Gallery did best of the international runners filling the next positions.

The strong Australian contingent disappointed with Apache Cat and All Silent finishing in midfield, while Scenic Blast's bid for a US$1 million bonus for taking out three legs of the Global Sprint Challenge in three countries ended in anticlimax as he bled.

For trainer Ricky Yiu it was the third time he won the Sprint after Fairy King Prawn in 1999 and Sacred Kingdom two years ago.

Prebble, meanwhile, savouring success after victory in the same race in 2006 aboard Absolute Champion, said: "I had a lovely run in midfield but I didn't want to get there too quickly. When I was coming off their backs at the top of the straight, I had to count to ten before pressing the button because he's getting smarter as he gets older - he nearly pulled up on me there in the end! To be honest, I expected he would perform like that but it's great when it all works out."

A beaming Ricky Yiu added: "I felt the same before the race as I did before he won in Singapore earlier in the year. He was in good condition, training well and we just needed the luck in running and Brett did a brilliant job. To win this race for the third time is a real thrill, too."

Darren Beadman, however, lamented the wide barrier in 12 that forced his hand on One World.

"He's run out of his skin - he'd have won with a better gate, we'd have been a few positions closer, and with the way he finished that would have been enough. I was behind Inspiration in the run and if he had been able to take me into the race a little longer it would also have made a difference."

2009 CATHAY PACIFIC HONG KONG SPRINT 1200m (6f)

Sha Tin Racecourse

EIGHTH LEG 2009 GLOBAL SPRINT CHALLENGE

Sunday 13 December 2009

2.40pm (Local HK Time)  5.40pm (Australia AEST) 3.40pm (Japan) 6.40am (UK)

MIXED BAG FOR AUSSIES IN HONG KONG DRAW

There were mixed results for Australia’s three representatives in Sunday’s $1.8 million Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Sprint at Thursday's barrier draw at Sha Tin racecourse.

While the connections of Apache Cat (barrier 9) and Scenic Blast (3) were satisfied, Grahame Begg, trainer of the highly fancied All Silent, who drew the outside of the field of 14, said he would have preferred a “softer” draw.

“I know he usually gets back in his races, but now we have no option and he has never been up against a field of this calibre before,” Begg said.

Local champion and 2007 winner Sacred Kingdom (7) is the current favourite at 11/4 with London-based bookmaker William Hill ahead of All Silent at 7/2.

Scenic Blast, Australia's reigning Horse of the Year, has eased slightly from 6/1 to 7/1 and Apache Cat, who was favourite when he finished third in the race last year, is an 8/1 chance.

Scenic Blast stands to collect a $US1 million bonus on Sunday if he can win his third Global Sprint Challenge race of the season.

Trainer Danny Morton said although Scenic Blast had had his share of problems in recent months, he believed the five-year-old was now in as good as shape as when he won the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes (1000m) at the Royal Ascot carnival in June.

“I would have liked to have started him in the Sprint Trial at Sha Tin a couple of weeks back but it didn't really fit in with his preparation,” he said today.

Morton rode Scenic Blast in an easy work-out on the all-weather track at Sha Tin this morning and said he would have a gallop on the course proper tomorrow (Friday).

All Silent also worked on the all-weather track while Apache Cat, ridden by Danielle Ellet, looked a picture of fitness when he galloped on the course proper this morning.

Trainer Greg Eurell said Apache Cat had freshened up really well since his last start fourth behind All Silent in the Patinack Farm Classic at Flemington and he believed the seven-year-old was in better shape than at this stage last year.

Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, CEO of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, said at the barrier draw that he believed the Hong Kong Sprint field, which includes nine individual group 1 winners, was the best assembled anywhere in the world in the past 20 years.

AUSSIE CHASING $US1M BONUS

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.

Amongst the 13 rivals he will have to defeat are Victorian cult hero Apache Cat and explosive New South Wales sprinter All Silent.

The International Sprint, which will be run at 5.40pm (AEST), is the eighth and final leg of the Global Sprint Challenge, a series that takes in elite races in Australia, Hong Kong, United Kingdom and Japan.

Any horse that wins Group 1 Challenge races in three different countries is entitled to the bonus which is split 75 per cent to the owner and 25 per cent to the trainer.

Scenic Blast won the Group 1 Coolmore Lightning Stakes (1000m) at Flemington in January, before capturing the Group 1 King’s Stand Stakes (1000m) at Royal Ascot, UK in June.

He took aim at the bonus in the Group 1 Sprinters Stakes at Nakayama, Japan in early October, but finished unplaced after meeting with severe interference.

Trainer Danny Morton said the bonus provided an enticing carrot for the connections of Scenic Blast, although Sunday’s opposition is arguably the strongest he’s met all year.

“It would be a big thrill if we could win the bonus and certainly a great achievement for the horse, but it won’t be easy,” he said from Hong Kong.

“It’s a strong field and any one of half a dozen horses have really strong claims so we’re going to have to be at our best to win the bonus.”

Morton said that a recent setback involving bruising to the horse’s feet was now a distant memory and that he expects Scenic Blast, who’ll be ridden by leading Victorian jockey Steven Arnold, to put in a great performance.

“It probably took me four or five days to get over his setback, but the horse is spot on now and I’m really happy with him,” he said.

“Since then he’s had a good solid trial up the straight (at Sha Tin) and did a nice piece of work on the course proper yesterday so I’m really happy with where he’s at.”

The barrier draw for the International Sprint will take place tomorrow, with Morton relaxed about what scenarios it may present for his stable star.

“Everyone’s pretty keen on an inside draw, but my fellow’s a big galloper who enjoys a bit of room so it won’t be the end of the world if he draws a little bit wider. In the end you’ve just got to deal with what you get,” he said.

The Greg Eurell-trained Apache Cat, who’ll be ridden by two-time International Sprint winner Damien Oliver, is out to improve on his narrow third as favourite in last year’s race.

The Grahame Begg-trained All Silent, who’ll be ridden by Victorian young gun Nicholas Hall, comes off a last start victory in the seventh leg of the Global Sprint Challenge, the Patinack Farm Classic at Flemington on 6 November.

Also carrying the Aussie flag on Sunday is NSW galloper Racing To Win who lines up in Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Mile (1600m) at 6.50pm (AEST).

The Hong Kong International meeting will be broadcast live from Sha Tin on TVN and Sky Channel from 3.25pm (AEST), with the Victorian TAB wagering on all races.

The Moonee Valley Racing Club will conduct a twilight meeting from 3.45pm (AEST) in conjunction with Hong Kong and are offering a unique promotion thanks to the support of the TAB.

The Club and TAB are giving away 500 ‘Apache Attack’ vouchers to patrons on-course. The vouchers entitle the holder to a free $20 tote bet on Apache Cat when they invest $20 or more on the cult hero in the International Sprint.

In addition, a special Sunday BIG6 will take in two races from Moonee Valley and four races from Sha Tin, whilst a $24,933 TAB Quaddie jackpot is on offer on the Sha Tin meeting.

To view the Hong Kong fields visit http://www.hkjc.com/english/hrc/hindex.asp.

Trackwork Images From Hong Kong 8/12/09 - International Horses

Australian trained SCENIC BLAST will win a US$1,000,000 bonus for his connections with a victory in Hong Kong

                                              Australian Trained ALL SILENT and APACHE CAT

UK Trained TOTAL GALLERY and Japananese Trained LAUREL GUERREIRO

US Trained CANNONBALL and CALIFORNIA FLAG

UK trained Borderlescott and War Artist did not work on the track on Tuesday