Helene Happy Star forges to HKG3 Queen Mother Memorial Cup success

09/05/2015

Helene Happy Star (122lb) and Neil Callan faced teeming rain and forged on determinedly over a softened track this afternoon (9 May) to give trainer John Moore a third HKG3 Queen Mother Memorial Cup (Handicap) victory in four years.

Moore, who won the 2012 and 2013 renewals of the 2400m feature with subsequent G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m) winner Dominant, will now point his emerging stayer at Hong Kong’s final major event of the season, the HK$10 million G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup. That contest takes place at the course and distance on Sunday, 31 May.

“He goes to the Champions & Chater next and then he’ll be put away for the summer. I think he’s just coming to grips with things here and there’s further improvement for sure,” said Moore after Helene Happy Star had made all to win the stamina test by three quarters of a length in a time of 2m 30.70s.

Drawn widest in gate 13, Callan took the four-year-old British import directly to the lead, crossed to the rail and dictated the tempo ahead of the shadowing John Size-trained Khaya. The Irishman shook the reins around 800m out and Helene Happy Star quickened the pace, the result being a strung-out field of battling and toiling rivals by the time the Zamindar gelding and Khaya took the final turn.

The latter was already under jockey Nash Rawiller’s whip at that point and when Callan got to work at the 400m mark Helene Happy Star responded gamely, quickly driving three lengths ahead of that struggling opponent. It was left to the Caspar Fownes-trained bottom-weight, Renaissance Art (113lb), to throw down a late challenge as he stayed on for second. Fellow light-weight Take To The Limit (113lb), from the Richard Gibson stable, was a further two and a quarter lengths back in third.

The win was a first in Hong Kong – at the seventh attempt - for Helene Happy Star, who had been purchased with a view to winning this season’s HKG1 BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) in which he finished a creditable fourth to Luger. The gelding followed that effort with a solid eighth behind Blazing Speed in the G1 APQEII Cup (2000m) two weeks ago.

Moore credited Helene Happy Star’s work rider for teaching the horse to settle, thus enabling Callan to execute the same front-running tactics that had already produced a 2000m Listed race win in Britain last term.

“Drawing the wide gate and remembering what the horse did in England I thought he might get a soft lead. I think the fact that he was able to settle in front is down to his English work rider, Vincent. When Hugh (Bowman – the horse’s rider in the Derby) was up here (recently) he said how much he has relaxed these days. He went along at his own speed, he’s already performed with cut in the ground, so everything fell into place and we got away with it.”

Moore has a high regard for the latest talented stayer in his care and is harbouring hopes, at some point in the future, of a possible tilt at one of the world’s most famous staying contests.

“I’d say 2000 metres to two miles would suit him and he could even be a Melbourne Cup horse – seriously,” he said.

Premiership leader Joao Moreira went into the annual The Chairmen’s Raceday requiring four wins to level Douglas Whyte’s all-time Hong Kong record of 114 wins in a season. The Brazilian sensation endured a frustrating afternoon as, remarkably, he finished second in each of the first six races and drew blanks in the next three contests before he returned to winning ways in the 10th and final race, the Stevenson Cup, aboard the Size-trained Dr Good Habit.

Whyte partnered a double thanks to the Moore-trained Tango Fire in race seven, the Arculli Trophy, and notched a timely success when he sported the colours of current Club Chairman Dr Simon Ip atop Glacier Blue in race three, the Purves Quaich. Reigning Champion Jockey Zac Purton notched a double on Rouge Et Blanc in race two, the MacWhinnie Cup, and Lucky Hammer in race six, the Li Cup.