Taking Aim justifies Douglas Whyte’s faith after breaking back into winners’ list

By Leo Schlink
Winless for more than two years, Taking Aim completed a long, eventful trek from the brink of enforced retirement to Sha Tin’s winners’ stall after the Australian import trounced his rivals in the Class 3 Devon Handicap (1400m) on Saturday (17 April)

Placed only once in 17 starts since the end of the 2018/19 season, the Choisir gelding badly injured his nearside hock in a float mishap two years ago and, if not for the persistence of owner Edwin Cheung, the chestnut almost certainly would have been retired.

The trauma was also part psychological, limiting Whyte to campaigning the six-year-old almost exclusively at Sha Tin because of a feared aversion to floats.

The former champion jockey has sent the sprinter only once to Happy Valley because of concerns over how the horse will react in a float.

 “He goes into a float ok, but you don’t know what will happen after that. Even the one run, when I took him to Happy Valley (23 December, 2020), I had to get a special trailer for him to take him there because he’s obviously a bit pedantic about being in a float,” Whyte said after watching apprentice Jerry Chau cruise to a three-length win on the patched-up gelding.

G1-placed in the 2017 J. J. Atkins (1600m) behind Capital Gain, Taking Aim also ran second to champion Kiwi Melody Belle in the G2 BRC Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) in the same season for Peter and Paul Snowden before he was exported to Hong Kong.

Enhancing his 2020/21 haul to 21 wins, Whyte lauded Carroll Street’s growing maturity after the pint-sized gelding scored in the Class 3 Cornwall Handicap (1000m) for Vincent Ho.

Benno Yung matched Whyte’s brace after Zac Purton helped deliver Alloy Star’s first victory as the Sebring gelding saluted at his 15th Hong Kong attempt, lifting the Class 5 Suffolk Handicap (1200m).

Yung clinched a double with Shanghai Dragon, who was given a brilliant front-running ride by Karis Teetan, notching his third win from four starts by claiming the Class 4 Somerset Handicap (1800m).

 “The stable is going well, the horses are going good,” Yung said. “Hopefully there will be more winners.”

Antoine Hamelin notched his first winner since early March when John Size-trained Red Desert saluted in the programme’s feature – the Class 2 Alnwick Handicap (dirt, 1200m) – in the tightest finish of the day.

Red Desert, another of Oasis Dream’s progeny to excel on the Hong Kong dirt, fended off Sunny Boy by a short head with the same margin separating Kurpany in third place.

Trainer Richard Gibson attributed Unicornbaby’s victory in the Class 4 Kent Handicap (1400m) to Hamelin’s compatriot Tony Piccone’s initiative after the Frenchman controlled the race despite drawing barrier 13.

David Hayes revelled in his first victory on the dirt this year when So We Joy showed impressive versatility to prevail in the Class 3 Dorset Handicap (1650m) for Derek Leung.

Apprentice Alfred Chan also produced a fine on-pace display aboard Flying Bonus for Dennis Yip to narrowly land the Class 3 Cumberland Handicap (dirt, 1200m) ahead of Sky Show and Harmony Spirit.

Lucky Ruby proved his liking of the 1200m dirt course with a successive victory on the surface, this time in the Class 4 Essex Handicap (1200m) under Matthew Chadwick for Manfred Man.

Hong Kong racing continues at Happy Valley on Wednesday (21 April).