Tycoon Resources continued their unbeaten run at Happy Valley on Wednesday night, scoring twice for Tony Cruz while David Eustace, Brenton Avdulla and Zac Purton also scored.
Off the $1.9 favorite in the first leg of the Grade Three West Kowloon Handicap (1,200m), Tycoon Resources handled the step up in class and distance comfortably in his third start.
After jumping well from gate four, Angus Chung Yik-lai put the three-year-old on the pace before running into the straight to win by one and a half lengths from Refusetobeenglish.
The pair clocked an impressive time of 1:09.19, well within the standard, with Cruz considering ditching the four-year Classic Series next season for the thrill machine.
“He is an improving horse, I believe he has good prospects. I think I will run him one more time before the end of the season. I believe he still has more improvement to come,” Cruz said.
“I think he’ll progress further in time, but for now I’ll stick to 1,200m. He’s only in Class Three right now, so we’ll see how he does before making big plans. I believe he can go further than 1,200m. He definitely has Class Two ambitions, that’s for sure.”
Viva Firecracker and Karis Teetan took the Grade Four Touring Cup (1,650m) for Cruz after taking the lead by holding off Sturdy Ruby by half a length. After being well-backed in the betting and jumping as second favorite at $4.6, the Sooboog runner has bounced back since picking up a limp in his right front leg following his recent start.
Eustace continued his good form, training five winners from the last four meetings including the Group Three Simba Rock Trophy (1,600m) and Light Years Charm and twice at Happy Valley last week.
Eustace and Avdulla got a double leg in tandem with Holmes Court in the first leg of the Grade Four Stanley Handicap (1,200m). The four-year-old was a quick success for Eustace in his first start for the trainer since transferring from Cruz. The Capitalist raced straight to the front and offered nothing else under a well-judged ride by Avdulla.
“We were very lucky to be given the chance and he’s just a horse that has been running well without a lot of luck. We gave him a bit of a break in the middle of the season – it really helps these horses. He had a good run, jumped well and rode well,” Eustace said.
“Hopefully there’s still a bit more in hand. He showed really good gate speed today and blinked, so it looks like this will be his track going forward.”
Kyrus Treasure made a brief visit to Grade Five company when he took the Chek Lap Kok Handicap (1,800m) in his first attempt at the city circuit. Opened by a comfortable double length in the post on Kingly Demeanour, he started the night perfectly for Eustace and added to the awareness of Jerry Chau Chun-lok at the Tony Cruz Award.
“Down the grade, right barrier, right trip and back on the ground was clearly the formula for him. I think he can continue next season and hopefully win the Grade Four. I think I’ll probably put him away now, hopefully he’ll get a bit of confidence from that win and mature a bit next season,” Eustace said.
Grand Nova made it a double race for Avdulla when showing spirit to run under Beauty Show and close by half a length in the Class Four Tsim Sha Tsui Handicap (1,000m). The John Size-trained jockey put a low debut at Sha Tin behind him when he returned to the 1,000m trip at Valley and added cheek pieces.
“Obviously it was a very good trip, but if they draw well with tempo suits, it makes the jockey’s job easier. For other horses, if they don’t have a good race, they don’t move anywhere,” Size said.
“Brenton has come back really strong. He looks more determined, he looks fitter and I think his mind is in the right place. We’ll see how Grand Nova comes out of the race, but if there’s another race for him and he’s good enough I’m sure he’ll go well again.”
Purton also enjoyed a double thanks to Legend Winner in the first leg of the Grade Four Kai Tak Handicap (1,650m) and Live Wire in the second leg of the Grade Four Stanley Handicap.
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