Australia, New Zealand again hold a strong hand in Hong Kong Sprint

Caulfield Cup winner Paris Lane celebrates his 30th birthday.

Race History of the 2017 Longines Hong Kong Sprint at Sha Tin on Sunday shows it as feature sprint anywhere in the world.

The Hong Kong International Sprint has been taken out 12 times by Australian bred performers since its introduction in 1999 but a victory by the Gary Moore-trained Takedown or Gary Portelli's Rebel Dane next Sunday would make either only the second winner bred, owned and trained in this country.

John Hawkes has long been among the legendary figures in the training ranks in Australia - confirmed by his induction into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame in 2004 - but he would dearly love to add an international Group 1 success to his resume.