Thursday at Happy Valley was a moderate card with really nothing on the programme going anywhere special but there were a couple to follow in the nearer term for a win.
Excellence (blue) flashes home to finish second to Wisky at Happy Valley on Thursday night. Photos: Kenneth Chan |
In the first of the Class Four 1,650m races, Excellence was certainly unlucky not to beat Wisky and a reminder of how little difference there is between the impressive Class Five winners and the average Class Four race.
Excellence strolled home in Class Five two starts ago when everything went right for him in a well-run race then didn't produce at his first appearance back in Class Four when the pace was much slower and he couldn't adjust.
A true tempo on Thursday night suited Excellence much better and would have been the winning difference but for jockey Ben So Tik-hung zigging when he should have zagged in the straight.
So went to come to the outside for a narrow run between Soul Achiever and Unbeatable Guts that was closed almost as soon as he aimed for it and he was forced to stop and change course.
Just that momentum loss was enough to make the difference, Excellence should have been the winner and showed he is well up to taking one out in Class Four.
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Another worth following is Pakistan Baby now that he is back in Class Four and he had no luck before finishing sixth to Speedy Achiever.
Drawn in the outside gate and lacking tactical speed, Pakistan Baby was always in trouble sitting three wide towards the rear in the race.
Pakistan Baby has now had two runs since the drop to Class Four lately and has been caught wide both times but he still stuck to the job and finished his race off on Thursday.
A Class Three winner two seasons ago, he is better than average in this grade, he is as good at Sha Tin as at Happy Valley but a good draw will mean the difference for him because he does lack early pace and needs to sneak up into his races around the circle rather than being left too much to do coming wide.
