The chase to the Hong Kong Derby is on Feb. 4 at Sha Tin Racecourse with the Hong Kong Classic Mile—the first step in a series that adds distance with each leg along the way to glory.
The Mile is followed in the series by the March 3 Hong Kong Classic Cup at 1,800 meters (about 1 1/8 miles) March 3 and the Hong Kong Derby at 2,000 meters (about 1 1/4 miles) March 24. All are restricted to 4-year-olds.
While the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s prestigious and lucrative slate of group 1 stakes draws more international attention, the Derby is a major target each season for local horsemen. It also has produced a steady stream of winners in subsequent international events, chief among them three-time local Horse of the Year Golden Sixty, who won in 2020.
Helios Express is top-rated among the 10 entries in the Classic Mile with a mark of current 102 rating off two wins and a third this season.
John Size trains Helios Express and looks for a repeat of the Toronado gelding’s performance Jan. 7, which returned a 2 3/4-length win at the same conditions in the Butterfly Handicap.
“He made the adaption to 1,600 (meters) more or less straight away,” said Size, who has won the race on three previous occasions. “He seemed to travel not too bad. He was a little bit strong, I guess, but still managed it in a slow-run race and he sprinted well off a slow speed. That’s about all we expected from him.”
The Classic Mile is the only major race on the Hong Kong slate that has eluded leading Hong Kong jockey Zac Purton and Purton says that is kind of by design since his focus is elsewhere. And, while he would gladly take a win aboard Helene Feeling in this season’s renewal, he says the race itself is in a bit of a slump.
“I’ve always focused on trying to win the Derby and put more importance on a horse that has a little bit more stamina who would be able to peak on the big day and overlooked the Classic Mile,” Purton said.
“The race has fallen away a little bit. There’s a few horses in there with quite low ratings, and there doesn’t seem to be a lot of depth to it. Helene Feeling has been racing fairly consistently. He seems healthy, so we’ll see what we get and where he is at.”
The Danny Shum trainee has won twice in class 2 events and placed in the January Cup (G3) at Happy Valley at 1,800 meters in his last start. He has a current rating of 95.
One of the “low ratings” horses Purton mentioned is Star Mac, whose mark of 64 is the lowest in the field. His trademark is a late rush from the back of the pack, which to date has produced nothing better than two third-place finishes. Still, jockey Karis Teetan has faith.
“I am really happy to be riding him. I think he’s an improving horse. I think he is improving with each run; it’s not a big field,” Teetan said.
