Ricky Yiu sweating on Champions Mile duo

Trainer Ricky Yiu Poon-fai said his Champions Mile runners Voyage Bubble and Sunlight Power are  “50-50” to line up in Sunday’s Group One at FWD Champions Day.

Dr Bronte Forbes, the Jockey Club’s head of veterinary regulation, welfare and biosecurity policy, reported routine pre-race checks on Tuesday found both horses had developed a capped elbow in one of their front legs.

“They will both get over it, but just before a race… it is very awkward,” Yiu told The Standard. “At this stage, it is 50-50 that they race.”

Yiu said a capped elbow, also known as a shoe boil, is a common condition in horses caused by repeated pressure on the elbow, often when lying down. It can lead to swelling and the formation of a fluid-filled sac, and while it is usually manageable, the timing is far from ideal so close to a major race.

“If it happened two weeks before the run, I can guarantee they would be alright, but the timing is bad,” Yiu said.

Both horses, along with all runners in Sunday’s features, must pass two more veterinary inspections before being cleared to race, on Thursday morning and again on Saturday morning.

“All horses get inspected again tomorrow, Thursday, then the final inspection is on Saturday morning,” the Jockey Club’s chief of racing product Greg Carpenter told The Standard. “So the latest a decision can be made on whether they can run or not has to be made before 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.”

Under the Jockey Club’s Rules of Racing, that is the cutoff for a withdrawal that would allow a standby runner into the field.

If Voyage Bubble and Sunlight Power were both withdrawn from the Champions Mile, it would open the door for the first and second stand by runners, Patch Of Theta and Beauty Joy, to gain a start.