By Ed Culham
BANK on the combination of joint leading trainer Tony Cruz and legendary jockey Hugh Bowman to bring some pre-Christmas joy to bettors when they team-up with FIVE G PATCH in the Venus Handicap over 11 furlongs (11.15am) at Happy Valley on Wednesday.
11-furlong contests are few and far between in Hong Kong – they are reckoned to be marathon trips by the locals – and there are only three mile-and-a-half races in the Hong Kong racing calendar.
The purchase of sprinters and middle-distance performers is the norm in the territory, and it is perceived to be a gamble if owners pay many thousands of dollars on potential stayers.
That didn’t stop owner Lam Wai Ying spending big money on Five G Patch after the four-year-old, who had an unblemished two-from-two record in Ireland (when trained by Joseph O’Brien, with wins over nine and 10 furlongs) left for his new surroundings.
That money looked well spent when the son of Derby winner Camelot left his rivals toiling with Joao Moreira aboard over 10 furlongs at Sha Tin in May on only his fifth appearance in the territory.
A bright future was envisaged, with Cruz stating the four-year-old could be aiming for the stayers’ crown by the end of this season.
So far, things haven’t gone according to plan since resuming last month, with two efforts riddled with either tough journeys – impeded and blocked appear in the race comments – or more generally nothing going right for him.
Twice he has finished behind the market leader, the Zac Purton-ridden Hit The Shot from the John Size yard, but there are strong reasons to believe he is far better than his present handicap mark suggests.
There is no better jockey than Bowman in long-distance races, and he is capable of steering Five G Patch back into the winners’ circle.
POINTERS
Five G Patch 11.15am Happy Valley
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