Raceday Review: Eustace-trained star wins again, Hewitson weaves magic and Hall snaps unwanted streak

By Jack Dawling 

Ride of the day: Lyle Hewitson - Talents Ambition

Lyle Hewitson and Mark Newnham dominated the dirt action at Sha Tin on Saturday thanks to a pair of improving four-year-olds and two smart steers in the saddle.

While Hewitson dictated proceedings from the front aboard New Forest in the fourth race of the day, the South African collected his second winner on the day with a contrasting ride, showing plenty of patience to surge from the rear of the field on Talents Ambition.

“Dirt king for the day, I’ll take that,” Hewitson said with a laugh. “I thought I had two horses capable of winning today so it was nice to get it done.

“I thought the race could map out quite poorly for New Forest but I made the decision after 100m that I could get to the lead and it worked out perfectly. 

“With Talents Ambition, he was in a good spot but the tempo wasn’t what we wanted. Luckily, he kept on well with the lightweight and was impressive.”

Horse to follow: Dazzling Fit

Trainer Mark Newnham celebrated Classic Mile success in his second season in Hong Kong and David Eustace may have plans to follow suit next term after Dazzling Fit staked his early claim as a four-year-old series contender on Saturday.

After hitting the line powerfully without winning on his first two starts, Dazzling Fit got off the mark last time out with an impressive success at Sha Tin when stepped up to 1,400 meters.

He repeated the feat over the same course and distance on Saturday, swooping late to prevail by a length and a quarter as the 1.3 favorite.

“The race set up really nice for him and we quickened up well,” Eustace told The Standard. “We’ve always liked him and it’s an important year for him next year, so we might put him away now but we’ll let him tell us.”

Training performance of the day: David Hall - Ka Ying Attack

When David Hall approached the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s post-race interview following Ka Ying Attack’s win at Sha Tin on Saturday, the trainer was greeted with a “long time, no see” by a few members of the local media.

That’s because it had been 60 runners and over six weeks since his last winner - a wait that was made to feel excruciatingly longer by Invincible Sage’s narrow defeat in Saturday’s G3 Sha Tin Vase (1,200 meters).

Ka Ying Attack made all in Class Three company over 1,400m and stretched clear to a two-length win.

“Once he got to the rail he was able to get into a nice rhythm and he gave a good strong kick,” Hall said. 

The trainer also said Invincible Sage’s narrow defeat to Helios Express may have been “equally as good as his Group One win last year. He’s gone down by a head to a seriously good horse.”