Johannes Brahms leads charge towards Hong Kong Classic Cup with Sha Tin win
Johannes Brahms (Siyouni) led the charge towards the Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) with victory in the Class 2 Heung Yee Kuk Cup Handicap (1600m) at Sha Tin on Sunday as Sky Heart (Ardrossan) and Steps Ahead (Written By) also advanced their Four-Year-Old Classic Series claims.
Formerly trained by Aidan O’Brien in Ireland where he was placed at Group 2 level, Johannes Brahms earned a Top-Up Bonus of HK$1.5 million (approx. AU$303,300) after scoring by a short head from Speed Dragon (Darci Brahma) in 1m 33.59s for Pierre Ng and Andrea Atzeni.
“This time we really wanted to test him, get him higher in rating and prove he’s a capable Class 2 horse. The next test is the [Hong Kong] Classic Cup – 200 metres further, so we probably have to ride him more quietly,” Ng said.
“He’ll be a very good miler. The four-year-old races always have a slow pace. It didn’t suit him last time [when 14th in the Hong Kong Classic Mile] but hopefully we’ll get a better draw next time and better pattern of race.”
Atzeni believes 84-rater Johannes Brahms is capable of successfully extending to the 1800 metres of the Classic Cup on March 2 and is also capable of strongly contending in the Hong Kong Derby (2000m) on March 23 if he is ridden conservatively.
“He’s got very good European form and if you could ignore his last run when he had excuses in the Hong Kong Classic Mile, he was entitled to be one of the top horses in the race today,” the winning rider said.
“We didn’t have a good draw [barrier ten] today and we had to take him back and ride him to finish with a mind of running 1800 metres or maybe further in the future. At the moment, there are a lot of horses with question marks at the distance. I think this horse, if you ride him quiet, there’s a good chance he could get it. He’s a good horse and it was no surprise today.”
Sky Heart enhanced his Classic Cup hopes with a courageous win in the Class 3 Rose Handicap (1600m) for Caspar Fownes and Hugh Bowman.
Rated 69, Sky Heart will be among several Fownes-trained entrants for the second leg of the Four-Year-Old Classic Series.
“He’s such an honest horse, he’s actually a quality horse and he can only get better,” Fownes said of the gelding. “He’s going to run further. I think he’s got a very good future in Hong Kong. He’s definitely a horse on the up. He was very strong through the line, indicating he will run further, so quite exciting for us.”
Steps Ahead was the first to advance his Derby claims with a narrow win over Lo Rider (Harzand) in the Class 3 Marigold Handicap (1800m). Trained by Francis Lui, the gelding lifted late under Atzeni.
“He’s an honest horse. He always keeps fighting in his races. I’ll try to get him to the Classic Cup and Derby, but his rating might not be high enough,” Lui said.
Hollie Doyle and Tom Marquand, who are in Hong Kong on a short stint to cover for injured riders Zac Purton, Vincent Ho, Angus Chung and Keith Yeung (who is set to return on Wednesday), both posted their first wins at Sha Tin.
Doyle struck first with a patient ride on Billionaire Secret (Slade Power) for Jimmy Ting in the Class 4 Lotus Handicap (1800m). Last entering the straight, Doyle guided the gelding to the outside before hitting the line powerfully.
“My first day on this lovely track and they seem to be hard to peg back today, but there was a pace collapse and it played to my horse’s strength,” said Doyle, who had previously ridden four winners at Happy Valley. “It’s great to be back and seemingly I have some nice rides.”
Marquand, who had previously ridden two winners at Happy Valley, scored on the Lui-trained Invincible Shield (I Am Invincible) in the Class 3 Primula Handicap (1200m). Formerly trained by Tony Gollan in Queensland, Invincible Shield won four races at Doomben before export.
“We’ve ridden a few nice horses here in competitive races but we haven’t shot gold, so it’s nice to get one win in each and I have to reiterate that we’re only here because of the boys’ misfortune and it’s pretty rubbish for them because all of us just wants everyone to get around safe,” Marquand said, also referring to Doyle’s breakthrough.
“If we can fill a gap, we’re more than pleased to and we’re glad we were on the call list of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.”
Horsepower (Harry Angel) maintained his unbeaten record with victory in the Class 3 Osmanthus Handicap (1000m) for Frankie Lor and Matthew Chadwick. Raced by the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s chairman Michael Lee, his wife Vanessa and daughter Amelia, Horsepower charged over the final 100 metres to make it two wins from as many starts.
Formerly known as Fire Follower when trained by Anthony Freedman in Australia, Horsepower’s finishing surge impressed Chadwick.
“He did it pretty well today, he had a heavy weight and he jumped only fair. I just had to wait for a run. He’s got a nice sprint and turn of foot. He’s got to be able to get there and then sprint and he did that today,” Chadwick said.
David Hall’s Magnifique (Charm Spirit) also remained unbeaten by winning the first section of the Class 4 Daisy Handicap (1200m) under Brenton Avdulla who proceeded to a race-to-race double when John Size-trained Magnificent Nine (Toronado) won the first section of the Class 4 Jasmine Handicap (1400m).
Chris So’s Master Of All (Charm Spirit) claimed the second section of the Class 4 Jasmine Handicap (1400m) under Alexis Badel, posting his second course and distance win of the season after Gallant Crown (Hallowed Crown) scored his first win since June 2023 with a comfortable success in the Class 5 Camellia Handicap (1600m) for David Hayes and Derek Leung.
Matthew Poon continued a superb season with victory on Benno Yung’s Ka Ying Warrior (Written Tycoon) in the second section of the Class 4 Daisy Handicap (1200m). Poon took his 2024/25 tally to 25 wins.