Beauty Flash (NZ) Claims HK-1 Stewards Cup
2 February 2011
The striking Windsor Park Stud-bred galloper Beauty Flash (NZ) (Golan) - a graduate of the Karaka Select Sale - added the HK-1 Stewards' Cup to his trophy cabinet on Sunday night.
The win comes hot on the heels of his recent success in the richest mile race in the world- the HK$16 million Gr.1 Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Mile (1600m).
Prepared by Tony Cruz, Beauty Flash (NZ) had to draw on his fighting qualities, bravely staving off the late challenges of Sunny King and Irian.
At the line, the Gerald Mosse-piloted galloper had too much class up his sleeve, crossing with a neck margin to spare over Sunny King.
"A Group One is never an easy race to ride," Mosse reported to the Hong Kong Jockey Club.
"But what I asked him to do, he did. Tony said to me 'Give him a chance to breathe and he will turn the engine on himself', and he was right. At the 200m there were horses going faster than me and I didn't want to use the whip because he doesn't like that. But he has such a big heart he kept quickening and fought them off."
The Kwok Siu Ming-owned gelding is now the winner of a staggering NZ$4,911,360 in stakes and of nine races from 20 outings.
Initially the Halidon Hill consignee had been snapped up for a moderate NZ$65,000, astutely purchased on this occasion by D O'Donnell at the 2007 New Zealand Bloodstock Select Yearling Sale.
He received his formative education with Lance Noble in New Zealand and after achieving one-win over the subsequent Gr.1 Metropolitan winner Herculian Prince from three career starts, he was exported to Tony Cruz's Hong Kong stable in 2009.
The classically Windsor Park Stud-bred galloper combines the bloodlines of the stud's former stallion Golan with Wychwood Rose - a daughter of none other than their champion stallion, Volksraad (GB).
Golan was previously best distinguished as the sire of the Gr.1 Victoria Derby winner Kibbutz (NZ) and counts 11 stakes winners to his credit.
At Karaka in 2011, he will be represented by six yearlings at the Premier Sale, 16 at the Select Yearling Sale and with ten at the Festival Sale.