Review: Gr.1 Centenary Sprint Cup ( Horses, Guide, Racecard, 2019 Results & Video)
Saved By The Clock
Joao Moreira claimed his first Gr.1 for John Size in Centenary Sprint Cup aboard Beat The Clock.
John Size’s gelding had come up short in four previous Group One races including when dead-heating for second with Mr Stunning behind D B Pin in this race last year.
Although faced with the same pair of rivals again, this time he had a new weapon against his old foes - Joao Moreira.
D B Pin clocked much faster finishing splits when chasing home Mr Stunning on that cool Friday morning, but Moreira sensed something that wasn’t detectable on the stopwatch in the way Beat The Clock powered clear of an ordinary field from the front.
There was no need to make the running this time as Little Giant and D B Pin set a true early pace and Beat The Clock stalked on the rail into the straight with Mr Stunning pushed along in midfield by Karis Teetan.
Beat The Clock gave D B Pin a brief nudge as he was eased outside with 300m to run but quickened on demand soon after.
Mr Stunning showed all his trademark courage to throw down a strong challenge, but the winner never looked like surrendering and held on by a neck in a winning time of 1m 08.42s, just less than a second outside of Sacred Kingdom’s record set in 2007.
Meanwhile, Moreira was thrilled to gain a first win at the top level in Hong Kong since Season’s Bloom’s Stewards’ Cup success on this card a year earlier, though the Brazilian felt the race didn’t go exactly as expected.
The form book shows that Beat The Clock crept up on Beauty Generation’s inside to draw level inside the final 200m last February only to go down by a head as the winner rallied.
Moreira is looking forward to taking on Hong Kong’s superstar again, but Purton is hoping the result is the same.
The stage is set for another heavyweight battle next month, then. It’s Size v John Moore; it’s Moreira v Purton; most of all, it’s Beat The Clock v Beauty Generation. And, if the race is anything like last year, then Moreira won’t be the only one roaring.
Click here For Full Finishing list 2019
Click here to watch Winner Race 2019
Location, Date, Time: Sunday, January 20, 2019, Sha Tin, 15:00
Credit: HKJC
