Depleted Hong Kong jockey ranks sees opportunities arise
The medically enforced hiatus of two of Hong Kong’s leading riders may be a hammer blow early in the city’s racing season, but it has also opened up an opportunity for others to potentially emerge as championship contenders for the upcoming term and beyond.
Four-time champion jockey Joao Moreira and Mauritian rider Karis Teetan, long touted as the potential heir apparent, are both on the sidelines with different medical issues and varying prognoses as the Sha Tin-based roster takes a hit less than a month into the term.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club yesterday took the unprecedented step of sending out a personal statement from Moreira, who celebrated his 39th birthday on Monday, to confirm that he will not ride again in 2022.
“I have been suffering from left hip pain which is due to a condition called labral tear, from injury and stress,” the statement said. “After consulting experts in the field, I have decided to repeat platelet-rich-plasma (PRP) treatment which I have had once before in 2020. I will be having a certain period of rest, rehabilitation, and physiotherapy after the PRP injection.
“At this difficult time, I would like to thank the Hong Kong Jockey Club for its understanding and full support for my medical consultation and treatment. Also, thank you very much for your support and concern. I hope to return to riding in three months’ time.”
Moreira, who will undergo treatment in Hong Kong, also said that there was a difference between being comfortable and being race fit.
“I am ok, at least physically,” he said. “I’m just not in good enough condition to be able to get on a horse and ride in a race. I can still exercise but not to the point of putting myself under so much pressure that I feel pain. At the moment, it feels like my hip will break.
“The way I was feeling, I was letting myself, trainers, owners and the Jockey Club down. I couldn’t face the pain anymore, and I have to do something about it.”
The Brazilian, who also missed the first two meetings of the season as he recovered from “digestive system” surgery, shut down any speculation that he would potentially hang up the saddle but admitted that it has been far from an easy ride in recent years.
“I intend to ride again, otherwise I wouldn’t be doing this. I will be back,” he said. “I have found it hard to concentrate because of the pain and my performance hasn’t been where I’ve wanted it to be. I need to reset.”
Meanwhile, Teetan is also out of action for the foreseeable future due to thyrotoxicosis – a thyroid hormone overload.
The 32-year-old last rode at the September 18 meeting at Sha Tin, where he rode three winners and four placegetters from eight rides. However, a blood test the following day revealed
“The last few days when I was working out I could feel that I wasn’t quite myself, my recovery was not the same and my heart rate was higher than usual,” Teetan told the South China Morning Post last week. “If you produce too many thyroid hormones in your body, it makes your heart beat faster than usual.
“The way I felt, I just wanted to check my blood and this is what we found. I had some blood tests and I’ve got some thyroid problems, because of that the doctors have given me some medication and booked me off just to rest a bit.”
While Teetan was hopeful of returning tonight, it was confirmed on Monday that he would take longer to recover and so he will not return to the saddle for at least the next week.
While the logical beneficiary of their absence is defending champion rider Zac Purton, another who would likely take advantage – Silvestre de Sousa – is unable to immediately capitalise as he is serving a careless riding suspension and will not return until October 9.
In their absence, a golden opportunity has emerged for another rider to put themselves into that upper echelon of Hong Kong horsemen.
Lyle Hewitson (four winners this season) and Matthew Chadwick (three) have full books at Happy Valley tonight, while Luke Ferraris (three), Harry Bentley (one) and Alexis Badel (one) each have seven rides on the eight-race card.
Vincent Ho, who sits second in the jockeys’ championship with six winners – five behind Purton – has six rides, while Luke Currie – yet to ride a winner this season – will also have six opportunities to break his duck, led by the in-form Amazing Boy (Holy Roman Emperor) and local debutant Super Eagle (Mshawish), a runaway winner at Kilmore and Pakenham for Phillip Stokes earlier in the year.
Saturday’s National Day meeting also offers another chance for those riders to shine, with Badel in particular set to sparkle when he partners Cordyceps Six (Star Turn) in the National Day Cup (Gr 3, 1000m).