Excellent Line-Up Revealed For Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby 2007

The Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby (HKGr.1-2000m) is the premier event on the domestic racing programme and this evening´s announcement of the field for the HK$16million showpiece set for Sunday, March 18 at Sha Tin guarantees a Classic of the highest calibre.

'On behalf of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, I would like to offer our thanks to Mercedes-Benz for boosting the status of our most important local race both at home and abroad,' said Mr Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, the Club´s Chief Executive Officer.

This is the fourth year for the Hong Kong Derby to be sponsored by Mercedes-Benz, with whom the Club´s partnership will continue until 2009. This arrangement includes the other two races reserved for four-year-olds: the HKGr.1 Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Classic Mile and the HKGr.2 Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby Trial.

'Ask any owner, trainer or jockey which domestic race they most want to win and they will tell you it's the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby. There are several reasons for this: principally the prestige and glamour, the fortune and fame,' Mr Engelbrecht-Bresges added.

This year´s leading contender is Floral Pegasus. After dominant wins in both the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Classic Mile and Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby Trial, he is on the verge of becoming the first ever four-year-old Triple Crown champion.

'But this will not be easy,' Mr Engelbrecht-Bresges continued, 'because there are 13 other highly performed runners to consider in a Derby where the average rating is 102 compared to last year´s average of 96 ? this significant improvement in terms of quality and depth speaks for itself.'

Floral Pegasus, on a mark of 120, is the highest rated Derby runner since the 2004 champion, Lucky Owners, and it is difficult to find fault with his most recent three winning performances.

Although Tony Cruz´s chestnut colt has yet to tackle a distance of 2000m, few could claim he was tiring at the end of the Derby Trial´s 1800m when he scored by upwards of one and a half lengths from eight rivals he will meet again on Sunday week. Floral Pegasus also possessed the acceleration to defeat several of Hong Kong´s best sprinters and milers in the 1400m Chinese Club Challenge Cup (HKGr.3) on January 1.

Next in the ratings, Down Town (115) has been one of the real success stories of the current campaign and will become the first horse to contest a Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sprint (Gr.1-1200m) and Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby in the same season. He also proved his versatility and stamina with a battling third in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby Trial on February 20.

Runner-up to Floral Pegasus in the Mercedes-Benz Classic Mile and the Mercedes-Benz Derby Trial on his last two starts, Viva Macau (112) bids for unprecedented back-to-back Derby glory for owner Stanley Ho, trainer John Moore and jockey Christophe Soumillon. Viva Macau was a Listed winner over this distance in France where he also placed at Gr.1 level; he was imported to Hong Kong primarily to emulate the victory of Viva Pataca in 2006.

Supreme Class (107) and Survey Survey (106) complete a formidable three-pronged attack from the Tony Cruz stable. The former won the Chevalier Cup in November and has since finished fourth and fifth in the Classic Mile and Derby Trial respectively. Survey Survey, meanwhile, has twice scored over 1400m in Class 2 and ran a solid fifth in the Classic Mile. He has tackled 2000m before in a Listed Race at Royal Ascot, finishing creditably in midfield from behind a modest pace.

Plastic Polymer (105) possesses solid credentials as runner-up in the South Australian Derby (Gr.1-2500m) and by winning the Centenary Vase (HKGr.3-1800m) on just his fourth Hong Kong race. Growl (104) is another with classy Australian form as the victor of the Winning Edge Stakes (Gr.2-2400m) and a fine second in the Mackinnon Stakes (Gr.1-2000m).

Despite a sedate tempo in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby Trial, Vital King (100) caught the eye with a strong finishing fourth from the rear and trainer Paul O´Sullivan is confident of his suitability to the 2000m journey.

Able One (98) ensured his Classic passage with a convincing display in Class 2 over a mile on February 20 and the prolific Supreme Gains (96), out of the money just once in nine starts, has long been considered as a horse with Derby potential.

Tom´s Six (94), four times a Listed winner and a Gr.3 runner-up in Australia, will take his chance alongside British import Champions Gallery (93). The latter was imported by the Andreas Schutz Trainer Syndicate with this race in mind and impressed on debut, even if he must now atone for a disappointing performance in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby Trial, a race in which Derby course and distance winner, Infinite Delight (91), finished in sixth place.

Flying Tamari (90), very consistent and also proven at the trip, completes the Derby line-up.