3 minute read

Selections and Analysis for Sunday’s 10-race fixture at Sha Tin (17/01/21).

Race 1: #5 Shanghai Dragon, #1 Daily Charm, #7 Tailor Made, #2 Circuit Number One
Race 2: #1 Super Ten, #4 Land Power, #13 Sun Of Makfi, #10 Sam's Love
Race 3: #1 Kings Shield, #2 Elusive State, #3 Glorious Artist, #4 Red Desert
Race 4: #1 Red Elysees, #8 So Awesome, #4 Double Take, #10 King's Race
Race 5: #3 Super Red Dragon, #8 Touch Faith, #13 Run The Table, #10 Little Player
Race 6: #12 Voyage Star, #10 Young Victory, #1 Everyone's Delight, #3 Judy's Star
Race 7: #3 Valiant Dream, #13 Carroll Street, #14 Forte, #5 War Of Courage
Race 8: #5 Foodie Princess, #10 Biz Power, #12 Party Everyday, #9 Ping Hai Treasure
Race 9: #5 Wellington, #8 Multimillion, #2 Classic Unicorn, #4 Beauty Applause 
Race 10: #10 The Hulk, #8 Ka Ying Excellent, #11 My Sugar, #14 Romantic Combo

Race 1: Swan Handicap

#5 Shanghai Dragon narrowly missed two starts ago before struggling at Happy Valley in his latest outing. He can return to form here switching to Sha Tin from the city circuit and with even luck, he is the one to beat. #1 Daily Charm is looking for back-to-back wins in this grade. He'll lug top-weight now but does get the services of champion jockey Zac Purton to offset the rise in weight. #7 Tailor Made turned his form around to grab second. He's been knocking on the door for a while now and he should get every chance to be hanging around at the finish. #2 Circuit Number One mixes his form but he should be around the mark again.

Race 2: Snipe Handicap

#1 Super Ten is looking for back-to-back wins. He remains in the grade which suits and although he's been allotted top-weight duties, he does get apprentice Jerry Chau's seven-pound claim to offset this minor hindrance #4 Land Power is slowly progressing and has shown significant improvement across three starts. #13 Sun Of Makfi is winless. He's progressing well and does get his chance with no weight on his back. #10 Sam's Love is next best as a two-time winner in this grade.

Race 3: Egret Handicap

#1 Kings Shield is arguably Hong Kong's classiest dirt horse and he would want to be winning this with a view to travelling to Dubai for the 2021 Dubai World Cup Carnival. He can roll forward and play catch me if you can. #2 Elusive State is getting on with age but he is still one of the top dirt horses in jurisdiction. He's another with overseas aspirations who will need to run well this Sunday to warrant considering going abroad. #3 Glorious Artist is looking for a hat-trick of wins. This is a big step up but he is racing well enough to warrant respect. #4 Red Desert is next best.

Race 4: Spoonbill Handicap

#1 Red Elysees can roll forward from gate one and prove difficult to run down. He's drawn to find the front and the booking of Joao Moreira warrants respect. #8 So Awesome is nearing a first win. He caught the eye in a recent barrier trial on the dirt and he commands respect now as he readies for his first race on the surface. #4 Double Take is looking for back-to-back wins. He's racing well and only needs to offset the wide draw to be competitive. #10 King's Race has no weight and could jump out of the ground at any time. 

Race 5: Sea Eagle Handicap (1st Section)

#3 Super Red Dragon won two on the bounce before finishing fifth on the dirt last start. He switches back to the turf her which is suitable and he's found a very winnable race. #8 Touch Faith steps out on debut off the back of an eye-catching trial at Conghua. He appears forward enough to win on debut and does get Joao Moreira up from gate three. #13 Run The Table gets in light and has place claims. #10 Little Player is on-the-up and bears close watching.

Race 6: Sea Eagle Handicap (2nd Section)

Competitive race with a host of chances but #12 Voyage Star rates strongly with his front-running style of racing. He should roll forward to take up the lead and from there, could prove difficult to reel in, especially from gate two. #10 Young Victory has more ability than his record suggests. He's shown glimpses at the trials and at a big price, he is worth taking a chance on. #1 Everyone's Delight has the class edge and does get the blinkers applied for the first time to sharpen him up. #3 Judy's Star is next best.

Race 7: Heron Handicap

#3 Valiant Dream is somewhat of a perennial placegetter but still, he is doing enough to suggest that a result will fall his way soon. Zac Purton hops up and this contest is suitable. #13 Carroll Street won well on debut. He now steps into Class 3 for the first time and does look to still have plenty of rating points in hand. #14 Forte finished second to Carroll Street and follows him up to Class 3. He's on-the-up also and gets a handy weight relief on rivals here. #5 War Of Courage is better than his recent record suggests and with the right run, he can turn his form around.

Race 8: Peacock Handicap

#5 Foodie Princess is a force to be reckoned with on the dirt with three wins on the surface from his last four starts. He's trialled impressively and rates as the one to beat. #10 Biz Power clocked a brilliant runner-up effort on the dirt over six furlongs last start. He's worth including, only query is the added distance. #12 Party Everyday doesn't know how to run a bad race with nine top-three efforts from his last nine starts, including three wins. It's just a question of how far back in the field he plans to settle in the run. #9 Ping Hai Treasure is next best.

Race 9: Flamingo Handicap

#5 Wellington is a supreme talent with four wins from five starts. He can continue his remarkable ascent here and while a competitive race, he does stand out as the one to beat. #8 Multimillion is consistent in his spot and does own a slick 55.23s personal best over the course and distance. #2 Classic Unicorn is a classy performer down the straight. He commands respect, as does, #4 Beauty Applause who rarely runs a bad race.

Race 10: Kestrel Handicap

#10 The Hulk gets a handy seven-pound claim from apprentice Alfred Chan who should, be able to roll forward to lead from the middle draw. #8 Ka Ying Excellent is as a solid as they come. Joao Moreira retains the ride and he commands respect. #11 My Sugar is looking for back-to-back wins. He crushed his rivals by four lengths last start and off that, does give the impression that he'll be able to handle the class rise. #14 Romantic Combo can figure with no weight on his back.