Latest news with #FastNetwork
Daily Express
10-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Express
Lord Justice looks set to dominate proceedings
Published on: Saturday, May 10, 2025 Published on: Sat, May 10, 2025 Text Size: Kinabalu Warrior. Kota Kinabalu: Primetime this Sunday has to be Race 5 (Rating 70-124) 1,200m over turf track. Dominant Lord Justice's unstoppable run looks set to continue. The promising Star Empire has demonstrated willpower and should be regarded. Well-prepared Kinabalu Warrior will also attempt the unimaginable task of upstaging the Lord. Veterans Smart Lad and Sukoli Beauty (Ex. Coronation II) can aim for placings. Race 4 (Class B) over 1,200m turf track looks explosive with as many as five runners to exchange blows. Classic Head, Messi and Silent Arrow are to scuffle for top spots with the tenacious Panglima Berantai and Blue Chip mounting legitimate challenges. Race 3 (Class 4) 1,000m sandtrack looks equally enthralling for the neutrals. Magic Blinks and newly promoted Brave Guard will have a go at each other. Amoyy and Dita are expected to dig deep and fight hard. Highest-rated North Star will jump at disadvantaged barrier 9. The quiet and reserved Piping Time has ability to surprise. Saturday showcases two fascinating races from Hong Kong Jockey Club. Enjoy Golf enters Race 6 (Class 4) with the singular mission to win. In his last five outings, Enjoy Golf came agonisingly close but ended up painfully as bridesmaid. This time, competition will come from new entrees to the circuit. A pair of three-year-old youngsters in Little Paradise and Mount Everest have raw talent for top spot. All three horses are jumping from outer barriers making this contest more intriguing. Race 10 (Class 2) is highlight with Fast Network tipped to come through despite carrying top weight. An amazing four-length winner last run on March 30, Fast Network is up against an extremely high quality field assembled in recent times. Bottomuptogether, Wunderbar and Gustosisimo are proven warriors while Invincible Shield is aiming for his fourth consecutive win. For race timings and details for Saturday races from Hong Kong and Australia and Sunday races from Tambalang, Perak and Australia, please visit the RSTC website or Facebook. Races are telecast 'live' at RSTC Tambalang Racecourse and Off-Course centres in Tanjung Aru and Keningau. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
South China Morning Post
08-05-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Dennis Yip backs Fast Network to overcome big weight and hot field in Class Two sprint
Veteran handler rates his exciting sprinter a strong chance despite lumping 135lbs against strong opposition on Saturday Dennis Yip Chor-hong is confident Fast Network can continue his hot form in Saturday's Class Two Pok Fu Lam Reservoir Road Handicap (1,200m) at Sha Tin as a potential tilt at the Group Three Sha Tin Vase (1,200m) looms for the exciting sprinter. A stunning four-length winner of the Class Two Barker Handicap (1,200m) last start, Fast Network headlines what is one of the best Class Two sprint fields assembled in Hong Kong in recent times. The Wrote four-year-old will lump top weight of 135lbs against the likes of the returning Wunderbar, five-time winner Bottomuptogether, the in-form Invincible Shield, Gorgeous Win and Gustosisimo. While Yip highlighted Francis Lui Kin-wai's Invincible Shield as a big threat chasing a fourth straight win, the veteran handler is pleased with Fast Network's progress since his demolition job on March 30. 'I checked the entries and Francis Lui's horse looks quite good, but I think my horse has very good form,' Yip said. Last out and first home! 👌 Exciting sprinter Fast Network crushes his rivals as 1.4 favourite with @HugeBowman for Dennis Yip at Sha Tin... #LoveRacing | #HKracing — HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) March 30, 2025 'He enjoys it up at Conghua – he's very happy. He keeps improving.' Since finishing a strong fourth to My Wish in January's Classic Mile, Fast Network has relished dropping back in distance with a pair of impressive victories. He stormed home from last under star Kiwi jockey James McDonald to score in a Class Three 1,200m before his breathtaking display last start under Hugh Bowman, who retains the ride for Saturday's race. Despite jumping only fairly and settling at the rear of the seven-horse field, Fast Network unleashed an explosive turn of foot to comfortably account for Bottomuptogether, who boosted the form by winning his next start on the dirt. While Fast Network rises five pounds on that success, Yip is adamant he won't have an issue shouldering the big weight while he has the advantage of barrier one in the field of 12. 'He won with weight last time and two starts ago with James McDonald, he won with top weight [of 135lbs],' Yip said. Bottomuptogether only meets Fast Network two pounds better from their previous encounter, with Frankie Lor Fu-chuen's classy sprinter rising to a mark of 100 off the back of a dominant last-start triumph. Wunderbar's return will command plenty of attention given he holds the title as the only horse to have beaten the world's best sprinter, Ka Ying Rising. John Size's quality galloper hasn't risen to the same heights as Ka Ying Rising since beating him in back-to-back races in January last year, but he did continue his winning ways with victories in his first two starts of the current season. Size opted to give the four-year-old a break after his last-start defeat in January and he has impressed in four Conghua trials ahead of Saturday's race. Champion jockey Zac Purton, who has been a regular rider of several top contenders in the Pok Fu Lam Reservoir Road Handicap, has opted to ride Bottomuptogether. That decision paved the way for fellow Australian Brenton Avdulla to take the reins of Wunderbar for the first time. Another key booking is Lyle Hewitson on Invincible Shield, who has been booted home by visiting riders Tom Marquand, Ryan Moore and Craig Williams in his past three starts. Saturday's Class Two sprint looms as a likely curtain-raiser for the Sha Tin Vase on May 31, particularly for Fast Network who boasts a rating of 103. However, Yip won't confirm future plans for the talented galloper until after Saturday. 'We'll see how he goes and check how he pulls up first,' Yip said.
South China Morning Post
30-03-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Paul O'Sullivan joins Sha Tin celebrations after Fast Network's explosive win
Paul O'Sullivan was back in familiar territory to join in on the celebrations of his former galloper Fast Network's explosive four-length victory in Sunday's Class Two Barker Handicap (1,200m) at Sha Tin. Originally owned by O'Sullivan, the son of Wrote was snapped up by Hong Kong connections on the back of an impressive trial victory in New Zealand. O'Sullivan trained more than 500 winners over 18 years in Hong Kong, headlined by five-time Group One-winning sprinter Aerovelocity and Vital King who won the 2007 Hong Kong Derby (2,000m). 'My brother [Lance] and I owned him,' O'Sullivan said of Fast Network. 'He had a couple of trials and was then sold to Hong Kong.' Fast Network's latest start coincided with O'Sullivan's once-a-year return to the city and the gelding's trainer, Dennis Yip Chor-hong, made sure he was front and centre in the winners' enclosure. After stepping a touch slowly, Fast Network scythed his way through the small field of seven from last under Hugh Bowman to justify $1.45 favouritism. He cruised past Zac Purton's mount Bottomuptogether to lead passing the 200m and drew clear to beat that galloper by four lengths, notching his fifth success at start 10. 'Before this race, I told Zac I would run him on April 14 but with only six runners in this race, I needed to put him in,' Yip said after entering Fast Network during the closing time extension period. Last out and first home! 👌 Exciting sprinter Fast Network crushes his rivals as 1.4 favourite with @HugeBowman for Dennis Yip at Sha Tin... #LoveRacing | #HKracing — HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) March 30, 2025 'His rating will go up 10 or 12 [points] so he won't be able to run on April 14 now. He'll be over 100 now.' Fast Network was not entered for the Group One Chairman's Sprint Prize (1,200m) on April 27. Supplementary entries for the sprint close on April 7, but Yip said he wasn't sure of upcoming plans for the four-year-old. 'I think 1,200m or 1,400m [is his best trip]. [Christophe] Soumillon told me the mile is his maximum, so he's better at 1,200m or 1,400m,' Yip said. Forza forges ahead Jamie Richards believes the best is yet to come from La Forza after the three-year-old passed his first Class Three test with flying colours on Sunday. Fresh from a dominant first-up win which came with a 10-point ratings penalty, La Forza continued his winning ways under Zac Purton in the Harlech Handicap (1,000m). The son of Toronado ran on from just off the leaders to salute as the $2.5 favourite, beating Circuit Jolly by a length and a quarter. 'He's going well. He's a horse who raced as a Griffin and he's just needed a little bit of time to toughen up,' Richards said after La Forza improved his record to three wins from five starts. 'It's always hard for a horse to win when they're coming off a 10-pound penalty, but he's come out and delivered again today. 'Whatever he does this season is going to be a bonus for what I think he'll be able to do next season as a four-year-old. 'At the moment [I'll keep him to 1,000m] but in time he will get further. I don't think we need to be changing a winning formula at the moment. I'm looking forward to the future with him.' Paradise clings on Little Paradise backed up his strong trial form to score a fighting win on debut in the second section of the Class Four Plantation Handicap (1,200m). An impressive winner of his two most recent trials, the Toronado three-year-old did a bit of work early to cross from barrier 13 to lead for Luke Ferraris before drawing clear in the straight. While he was tiring late, he did enough to hold on and beat the fast-finishing Beauty Missile by a head. 'He's a nice horse. He still isn't mature,' Ting said of Little Paradise, who won a Randwick trial for trainer Bjorn Baker before he was sold to Hong Kong connections. 'He drew wide and got keen when the jockey pushed him out. After this race he will improve. I'll keep him to 1,200m for now because he's still young and I think he'll be better as a four-year-old. 'We don't need to hurry for the next race, he'll probably have a trial to learn more and run again six weeks from now.' Benno's belated double Trainer Benno Yung Tin-pang fired in his first brace of the season, saving his best until last by winning the final two races on Sunday's card with Aeris Nova and Another World. Back with a bang! @zpurton fires home his third winner of the afternoon aboard a talented Another World for Benno Yung... 🙌#LoveRacing | #HKracing — HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) March 30, 2025 Aeris Nova caused an upset in the Class Three Homestead Handicap (1,200m), knocking off the $1.4 favourite Crossborderpegasus by a short head when starting an $18.9 chance. Another World scored his third win this term when he justified $1.8 favouritism with a comfortable success in the Class Three Lugard Handicap (1,400m).
