Horse Of Fortune dashed clear of a high-class field to secure an eye-catching victory in the Happy Valley Vase (1800m Handicap), the feature event at Happy Valley Racecourse tonight, Wednesday, 23 March.
Mauritian rider Karis Teetan placed Horse Of Fortune, which jumped well from the plum gate one, in the box seat position along the rail, following the early leaders Fat Choy Hong Kong and Romantic Touch. The Tony Millard trainee shifted out slightly turning into the home straight and easily got the better of Fat Choy Hong Kong to take the lead. At 200m Horse Of Fortune held a decisive advantage and the race was all over. The five-year-old clocked a winning time of 1:49.46 to win by two and three-quarter lengths.
“He has really improved. He is a typical South African-bred horse that needs more time to acclimatise and he has become more mature this term. He has won two Class One races in a row, so what can I say, not many horses can do that,” Tony Millard said.
“He is a Happy Valley specialist and he loves to race at this track. He travelled nicely from a good draw tonight so it is not surprising he won it in style. He’s getting up there in the rating, and I will take it step by step. He has done better than what I expect of him but hopefully he can still run well for us in the future,” Millard added.
The David Hall-trained Got Fly closed well in the final stages to claim the second spot. Fat Choy Hong Kong plugged on and was a further neck back in third. Packing Llaregyb made ground along the rail in the straight to take fourth.
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Photo 1:
Horse Of Fortune (No. 9), trained by Tony Millard and ridden by Karis Teetan, wins the Class One Happy Valley Vase (1800m) at Happy Valley tonight.
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Photo 2:
Happy connections of Horse Of Fortune celebrate their runner��s victory in the winners�� circle.
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Photo 3:
Photos 3, 4, 5, 6
Mr Silas S S Yang, Steward of the HKJC, presents the Happy Valley Vase and souvenirs to representatives of Horse Of Fortune��s owner Fantastic Five Syndicate, trainer Tony Millard and jockey Karis Teetan.
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Photo 4
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Photo 5
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Photo 6
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Photo 7:
Group photo at the presentation ceremony of the Happy Valley Vase.
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