RACEDAY REVIEW: Andrea Atzeni's four-timer, David Hall's double and Francis Lui's horse to follow

Luke Middlebrook's analysis of Sunday's Sha Tin meeting.

Ride of the Day - Andrea Atzeni, Endued

Andrea Atzeni’s four-timer deserves all of the plaudits and his ride on Endued was the one that stood out. It was a jockey’s race, won as much by intent from the start as anything that happened late.

Endued had mostly been at the mercy of wide gates this season and again came up poorly with barrier 14. Rather than drift back and trust his luck, Atzeni pressed on early, crossed favorite The Red Hare and had the John Size-trained Derby hopeful posted outside the leader by the 1,000m.

It was decisive, confident riding and it paid off. The quartet also nudged Atzeni’s season strike-rate back above 10 per cent, taking the Italian to 35 wins for the campaign, four behind Hugh Bowman after 52 meetings.

Horse to Follow - The Golden Knight

The Golden Knight finally got his reward, even if he needed the stewards to deliver it. For a horse carrying a hard-luck reputation, it was a fitting way to break through.

Francis Lui’s runner had been an eight-start maiden with four placings and looked set for another narrow defeat when he finished second to Master Trillion. But a protest followed, with stewards ruling interference near the 300m had cost The Golden Knight his rightful chance.

The placings were overturned and justice was done. Lui told The Standard he had never lost faith in the horse’s ability and, importantly, had resisted the temptation to overcomplicate things with gear changes while waiting for his turn.

Training Performance of the Day - David Hall

David Hall’s all-weather double had substance to it. Both winners came with quirks, setbacks or doubts attached and both suggested the stable has them on the right path.

Good Chap backed up his 24-to-one breakthrough by winning again, confirming it was no fluke. Hall believes the all-weather track is the key, particularly for a Deep Field gelding, while blinkers have also helped unlock improvement after a frustrating stretch of form.

Magnifique was the other notable result. Now a winner of five from seven, he landed his second victory from three starts this season after Hall gave him time to recover properly from the bleeding episode that halted his progress last July.