HONG KONG, China (AFP) - Superstar jockey Joao Moreira shone at Sunday's Hong Kong International Races at Sha Tin, as Japan put the finishing touches on a year of global dominance, winning three of the four features.
Adding to Group One wins in Australia, Dubai and England in 2019, Japanese horses captured the Hong Kong Vase (2,400m), the Hong Kong Mile (1,600m) and the Hong Kong Cup (2,000m) on Sha Tin's biggest day.
Glory Vase took out the Vase, $27 outsider Admire Mars saluted in the Mile and Win Bright snared the Cup, with Glory Vase trainer Tomohito Ozeki personifying the Japanese attitude of travelling anywhere to pick off big races.
"We are very pleased to come over here because we targeted this race because I thought the track would suit him," he said.
"It's my job as a trainer to provide the best result to the horses and connections anywhere in the world, so it's the best thing for us."
Lucky Lilac finished second to complete a Japanese quinella in the Vase, with Hong Kong hero Exultant's bid to go back-to-back in the race ending with a third-place finish.
Yasuo Tomomichi-trained Admire Mars' victory in the Mile left the home crowd flat, with reigning Horse of the Year Beauty Generation only managing third place after winning the race in the past two years.
Win Bright completed a superb Sha Tin double, following up his Group One QE II Cup (2,000m) win in April with victory in the HK$28 million ($3.6 million) Hong Kong Cup.
The Aidan O'Brien-trained Magic Wand out of Ireland's famed Coolmore operation finished second to give the international raiders the quinella.
With only one overseas runner lining up, the Sprint was always going to be dominated by Hong Kong and it was the ever-reliable Beat The Clock who took the honours ahead of Hot King Prawn and raging hot favourite Aethero, who jumped at $1.50.
Beat The Clock's win was the second Group One success on the day for superstar jockey Joao Moreira, who was also aboard Glory Vase, and the six-year-old gelding's third top-level success in the calendar year left the Brazilian with no doubts as to where the horse stands in Hong Kong racing.
"Some people were doubting how good he was, probably putting him second behind some other horses but he proved that he's the best sprinter in Hong Kong," Moreira said.
