Ricky Yiu unveils debutant Blazing Wukong ahead of Triple Crown bid with Voyage Bubble
Veteran handler eyes first-up victory with smart trialler a week before Group One bid with stable star
Gearing up for his shot at Triple Crown history with Voyage Bubble next week, Ricky Yiu Poon-fai will unveil an intriguing newcomer in Blazing Wukong at Sha Tin on Sunday.
The veteran handler has stable star Voyage Bubble on track for the Group One Champions & Chater Cup (2,400m) on May 25, with the four-time Group One victor bidding to join River Verdon as the only winners of Hong Kong's Triple Crown.
But first, Yiu will take a seven-strong team to Sha Tin on Sunday including debutant Blazing Wukong in the Class Four Hilltop In The Valley Handicap (1,200m).
The Toronado three-year-old has shown promise in his five trials at Conghua, including a pair of fast-finishing seconds on turf and a closing third on the dirt in his latest hit-out.
'He's a pretty straightforward sort of a horse,' Yiu said.
'He's had [five] trials before having his first start and his trials have been promising. The feedback on this horse is positive. He's good as gold.'
Blazing Wukong has drawn barrier eight for his race debut, with Andrea Atzeni booked for the ride.
While the newcomer has generally raced off the speed in his trials, Yiu is happy to let Atzeni make the call on race tactics.
'I'm going to leave it to the jockey. It depends on how quick they go. I don't want to force him or tie him down to any riding instructions, he's a young horse,' Yiu said.
Voyage Bubble tuned up for his @StanChart Champions & Chater Cup test with a barrier trial this morning as he aims to become Hong Kong's second #TripleCrown winner EVER! 🏆
📍 Sha Tin, 25 May | #LoveRacing | #HKracing pic.twitter.com/TqAYqijTQE — HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) May 16, 2025
Blazing Wukong carries the black, red and yellow colours of owner Jason Chan Kam-kwan, who races Group Three winner Nimble Nimbus with Yiu.
The unexposed galloper strikes a winnable race to start his career, with debut runner-up Rainbow Seven and last-start third placegetter Club Ace boasting the strongest recent form.
Joyful Friendship, The Concentration, Rising Force, Volcanic Spark, Jolly Ruler and Winning Data are the other Sha Tin runners for Yiu, who was pleased with Voyage Bubble's closing fourth under Matthew Poon Ming-fai in a dirt trial on Friday.
'After this trial, we'll just keep him as happy as possible and keep him ticking over until race day,' Yiu said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
9 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong Football Festival: city basks in job well done, Spurs boss hails ‘perfect' event
The curtain came down on the first Hong Kong Football Festival on Thursday, with a game between bitter rivals Arsenal and Tottenham that made a mockery of its friendly status and left organisers basking in the glow of a job well done. By any metric, they would consider the past week to have been a success, on and off the field, including a particularly impressive milestone for Kai Tak Stadium, which welcomed its 1 millionth visitor despite having been open for less than six months. Almost 60,000 fans turned out just to see the four teams train, and nearly 100,000 passed through the stadium's gates to watch Liverpool, AC Milan, Arsenal and Tottenham play the first pre-season games of substance in the city since the Asia Trophy in 2017. For the second game running, the crowd broke the record for attendance at a sporting occasion at the city's newest venue. This time, 49,975 crammed in, just 25 people short of the official capacity. Rachael Carroll, managing director of promoters TEG Sport, said the week had been 'a thrilling experience for everyone involved'. Tottenham players celebrate beating Arsenal in the Herbalgy Trophy at Kai Tak Stadium. Photo: Sam Tsang 'We can proudly say that the Hong Kong Football Festival has delivered on its promise to provide an unprecedented experience for football fans, right here in Hong Kong,' Carroll added.
South China Morning Post
10 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong Football Festival: city basks in job well done, Spurs boss praises ‘perfect' occasion
The curtain came down on the first Hong Kong Football Festival on Thursday, with a North London derby that made a mockery of its friendly status and left organisers basking in the glow of a job well done. Advertisement By any metric, they would consider the past week to have been a success, on and off the field. Almost 60,000 fans turned out just to see the four teams train, and nearly 100,000 passed through the gates at Kai Tak Stadium to watch Liverpool, AC Milan, Arsenal and Tottenham play the first pre-season games of substance in the city since the Asia Trophy in 2017. For the second game running, the crowd broke the record for attendance at a sporting occasion at the city's newest venue. This time, 49,975 crammed in, just 25 people short of the official capacity, and among them was the stadium's 1 millionth visitor. Rachel Carroll, managing director of promoters TEG Sport, said the week had been 'a thrilling experience for everyone involved'. Tottenham players celebrate beating Arsenal in the Herbalgy Trophy at Kai Tak Stadium. Photo: Sam Tsang 'We can proudly say that the Hong Kong Football Festival has delivered on its promise to provide an unprecedented experience for football fans, right here in Hong Kong,' Carroll added.
South China Morning Post
10 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong fans savour Tottenham victory over Arsenal on record-breaking night
Tottenham Hotspur beat Arsenal 1-0 in a barnstorming contest in front of a febrile and record-breaking crowd in Hong Kong on Thursday night. Pape Matar Sarr scored a fabulous winning goal befitting the first North London derby played outside the UK. After 45 minutes, he stole the ball from Myles Lewis-Skelly in the middle of the pitch, spied David Raya stranded out of his goal and flighted a picture-perfect 45-yard finish over the helpless keeper. If Sarr gained points with Spurs fans for the goal, he earned a few more with his celebration in front of the Arsenal loyalists filling the North Stand. Arsenal fans also formed the majority of the 49,975 that represented Kai Tak Stadium's biggest sporting attendance yet, beating by 271 the number who saw Hong Kong Football Festival's other match, between Liverpool and AC Milan last Saturday. 'It was an unbelievable goal, fantastic, well taken,' Thomas Frank, the Tottenham manager, said. 'All credit to Pape, he's impressed me.' Arsenal's Gabriel Martinelli tries a shot in the first half. Photo: Elson Li While Frank reflected on a night that delivered 'the positive result and performance we wanted', opposite number Mikel Arteta set aside the defeat to 'thank [Hong Kong] for the welcome'. 'We had very clear objectives,' he said. 'To keep developing our preparation and maximising every day to get to a really high level.
