3 minute read
Ricky Choi’s Fortune Lady made it four wins out of her last seven starts, with a last stride win over The Macallan (Eric Cheung), in Saturday’s Class 4 over 1800 metres on the turf.
Ridden by Roger Yu, Fortune Lady is one of very few mares racing in Macau, and in Saturday's race going to scale at just 979 pounds, was one of the smallest horses in the field. However, what the mare lacks in stature she makes up for in heart. After beginning only fairly from her outside gate of ten, she did a bit of work in the run to eventually stride forward to sit outside the pacemaker The Macallan in the backstraight.
Once in the straight the mare laid it down to the much bigger horse The Macallan, and as well Roger Yu in what was a clever bit of riding, also shut the door on the stablemate Chinese Hero, locking him away behind The Macallan until the race was all over. In a deceiving finish Fortune Lady got the stride in right on the line to win by a nose.
Choi has done a fine job with the mare taking her from a mark of 25 to what will be a rating of 56 after Saturday.
With only a small team of 18 horses in his yard, Choi has had 13 winners from his 122 runners this season, with 30 placings to his credit giving him a place strike of 35%.
Iron horse Casino Mok scored a much-deserved win when he got up in the last bound to win Saturday's Class 3 over 1200 metres for trainer Sio Cheung.
Ridden by Eric Cheung, Casino Mok settled in a third spot in a race run at a suicide pace set up by Diamond Moonlight, who had the field stretched out over 15 lengths down the side of track.
Once in the straight Cheung balanced up the son of Casino Prince (Aus) and he hit the line hard to beat, the unlucky Circuit Master (Breinell Yamzon) to win by a head, with the tiring Diamond Moonlight (Roger Yu) a half-length away in third.
Casino Mok who was saddling up his for 23rd run of the season, has been a model of consistency of late only missing a prize money cheque in two of his last 11 starts. Whilst he has only won two races for the season, he has seldom been out of a top three spot.
The now seven-year-old is a former Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott trained galloper who raced in Australia as Lord Macau. The gelding was originally an A$170,000 purchase at the 2015 Magic Millions Yearling Sales.
A much-travelled galloper, he raced from Randwick to Flemington and even Morphettville, with the end result three wins to his credit, one at Hawkesbury and two at Warwick Farm before being sold onto Macau.
The gelding has been a great money spinner in the enclave for new owner Mr. Mok Shing Fung, who purchased him for A$55,000 at the 2018 February Inglis Online Sales.
His Macau record now read six wins and 26 placed efforts from his 72 starts in the enclave and close to $2.2 Million HKD in prize money.
Hard luck story of the race was the Nick Moore trained Circuit Master who formally raced in Australia as Esperance, when prepared by James Cummings. The six-year-old was checked at the 800-corner losing a length and a half and was only defeated by a head on the line.
