Draw Favours Local Runners In Cathay Pacific HK Sprint

Hong Kong´s sprinting stars Sacred Kingdom and Absolute Champion have drawn ideally for Sunday´s CXHK Sprint while world champion sprinting mare Miss Andretti left part-owner David Mueller grimacing when he drew barrier 12 for the Australian speedster.

Last year´s winner Absolute Champion, who has early speed, is well served from gate three while Gerald Mosse´s options will be suitably open, aboard Sacred Kingdom, from six.

´Well....,´ said Mueller after plucking the second outside barrier for Miss Andretti, ´ideally we would have liked five....we got twelve which I fancy is still better than one where she might have got cluttered up.

´She does like galloping room. We´re happy to be drawn outside Sacred Kingdom and she does like to stalk her rivals which she can certainly do from an outside gate. I guess if she´d drawn 12 of 20 rather than 12 of 13 you wouldn´t think it so bad,´ Mueller said.

The mare´s trainer Lee Freedman was also seemingly unperturbed by the draw. ´I don´t think the draw will be a problem. There´s speed on the inside and that sometimes can make it tough for those drawn down on the rails. Anyway a good jockey should be able to overcome it inside a furlong,´ Freedman said.

Absolute Champion´s trainer David Hall does, however, believe the draw can be critical from the 1200 metres start. ´It´s a pretty important barrier at the 1200. There´s a short run to the first turn and I´d rather be drawn in.

´I´m happy with three. It´s taken the thinking away for us. Our horse will be happy wherever he lands from three while I think the Miss Andretti camp will have plenty of thinking to do now,´ Hall said.

´Just great,´ said Absolute Champion´s jockey Brett Prebble, ´he begins pretty well and we can be in a good spot from the word go. I´d be holding my breath going to the first turn if I was on Miss Andretti.´

UK sprinter Benbaun, prepared by Mark Wallace, is drawn barrier two. ´He didn´t travel that well in the run last year from gate three, but I´m confident he will this time around. It can only help that Miss Andretti is drawn out wide,´ Wallace said.

Japanese mile contender Kongo Rikishio was, arguably, the horse most advantaged by the draw in all four feature races. The noted front-runner drew barrier one. ´I am happy we are drawn the inside. It´s perfect for us,´ said trainer Kenji Yamauchi.

Major mile contenders Good Ba Ba (6) and Excellent Art (5) were favoured when their barriers were revealed while Christophe Soumillon, who rides French filly Darjina, said the nine alley was ´not too bad´.

Andreas Schutz, who trains Good Ba Ba, said he was ´very happy with the six, that´s the perfect slot for him. I´d rather be there than right on the inside´ while Aidan O´Brien had a smile on his face after he drew barrier five for the three-year-old Excellent Art. ´That´s certainly better than in the States,´ O´Brien said in reference to the horse having drawn wide in the Breeders´ Cup Mile.

The draw is often important from the 2000 metres start but perhaps less so, this year, with just seven runners to face the starter. This view was summed up by Vengeance Of Rain´s owner Raymond Gianco Chow Hon Man when he said: ´ I was looking for an inside draw but I guess that in a small field it is not a big worry´.

Japanese trainer Yukihiro Kato, with Shadow Gate, had mixed feelings after the barrier draw. 'To be honest, I wanted to pick up the outside draw because we did not want him to be sandwiched from outside at the first turn. However it is a small field so my horse will handle it well,´ he said.

Saeed Bin Suroor, who prepares Ramonti, said he had ´no complaints´ about barrier four while jockey Brett Prebble said he expected Art Trader to ´bowl along in front´ from barrier one with Darren Beadman up and that horse´s fancied stablemate Viva Pataca to take a sit behind the speed. Prebble rides Royal Prince who drew six. ´My horse can tend to get pulling. I might go forward....we´ll see what happens,´ Prebble said.

Barriers are not often crucial to the outcome of the CXHK Vase and that was reflected in most trainer´s post draw comments. ´It doesn´t really matter over a mile and a half but I am happy with four,´ said Doctor Dino´s trainer Richard Gibson, ´and I didn´t really want one or 13.´

Vase favourite Dylan Thomas drew seven. ´That´s fine,´ said trainer Aidan O´Brien, ´the main thing is that the horse is happy and in good shape. I was delighted with how he was this morning.´