India's first & foremost horse racing portal
VARIETY CLUB IS THE CHAMPION
By Mohit Lalvani | 04 May 2014 |
Variety Club wins The Champions Mile (Gr.1)
In a dominant run to the line, Variety Club from South Africa won The Champions Mile (group one).
One of the top mile races of the racing year, was held at Sha Tin in Hong Kong this afternoon and not surprisingly it attracted some of the best milers from different parts of the world.
Among the leading contenders were the local favourites, Able Friend and California Memory. Able Friend had run second in the Hong Kong Derby after which he won the group one, Chairman's trophy and had the services of Moreira in the saddle. California Memory, the grey, was reappearing in 2014 after a solid fourth in the group one, Longines Jockey Club Cup in November last year and had Cruz in the sadlle.
The raiders included the world travelers Gordon Lord Byron who had recently won the group one George Ryder Stakes in Australia and the champion miler from the powerful stable of Mike De Koch, Variety Club - the winner of the group two, Godolphin mile on World Cup night.
Sitting up on the early pace, almost contesting the lead right from the start, Variety Club quickened away from the field and never looked to be in any kind of trouble, winning with a few lengths to spare.
After the race, De Koch labeled this horse as the best miler he brought to Hong Kong and jockey, Anton Marcus said that this victory was the highlight of his career.
As of now, no future plans have been fixed for the winner.
Image Courtesy http://www.hkjc.com
Register Now