Jerry Chau Chun-lok will head to Saudi Arabia this weekend with serious momentum after a treble at Happy Valley on Wednesday night.
Chau’s wins on Inno Super, Bunta Baby and Flying Wrote give him eight victories from his last 18 races, and he will take that confidence into Saturday’s G2 Riyadh Dirt Sprint at King Abdulaziz Racecourse.
In Riyadh, Chau reunites with Self Improvement, whose Korea Sprint win in Seoul earlier this season helped ignite a bounce-back campaign for the 25-year-old rider.
Chau rode just 23 winners last season after suspensions prevented him from building rhythm, but Flying Wrote’s success was his 24th of the term and has him looming as a genuine chance to challenge Vincent Ho Chak-yiu for the Tony Cruz Award as leading local rider.
The three wins helped Chau jump from sixth to fourth in the trainers' championship and two wins ahead of Ho and one behind third-placed Andrea Atzeni.
Inno Super’s trainer David Eustace is a strong supporter of Chau.
“He rode a bit for me last year and I had always watched him and thought he rode well, but he had a lot of suspensions last season and he just couldn’t get into a rhythm,” Eustace said. “This season I have been able to get him on a few more and he has ridden them very well. He has a good set of hands and he is strong in a finish — so I am very happy with him and I hope our relationship will continue.”
Inno Super benefited from a better draw over 1,650 meters on the A course and Eustace believes the four-year-old can win his way out of Class 4 this season.
“He has been gradually improving with each run, he got a nice setup today, he jumped well and he got a well-timed ride from Jerry,” Eustace said.
“The horse has put in a few performances that deserved a win this season so it was nice to see him break through today.
“Jerry got him to jump well and into a nice rhythm — he is still learning how to race this horse — but I think he will be able to win his way out of Class 4 and we will see after that.”
Chau’s ride on Self Improvement means he will miss Saturday’s Sha Tin meeting — and a booked ride on Lucky Sam Gor, a horse he has partnered to three wins this season.
Lucky Sam Gor is entered in a Class 3 (ratings 85-60) for four-year-olds only over 1,600 meters as trainer Mark Newnham looks to qualify the in-form galloper for the Hong Kong Classic Cup on March 1.
Newnham praised Chau’s understanding of Lucky Sam Gor after the pair’s last-start win, but has booked James Orman for Saturday’s assignment.
