Raging Blizzard had run behind Ka Ying Rising seven times, but with the world's best sprinter in quarantine, John Size's honest campaigner finally got his moment in the Group 2 Premier Bowl (1200m) at Sha Tin on Sunday.
The seven-year-old swooped from midfield under Brenton Avdulla with top weight of 135lb to beat Ka Ying Attack by a narrow margin, ending a 16-race run of outs for the sprinter and giving Size a record-extending fifth victory in the Premier Bowl.
"It's a bit of justice for him," Size said. "He tries so hard in all his races, and he's been unlucky to run into some very good horses constantly. But eventually, he's rewarded for his consistency, so it was quite satisfying to see him win a decent race."
Raging Blizzard has spent two seasons picking up placings in Hong Kong's biggest sprints, running second to Ka Ying Rising in last December's Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint and third behind him in April's Chairman's Sprint Prize. With Ka Ying Rising returning from his recent second in The Everest, it was a chance for the second tier to shine, and Raging Blizzard took it.
"It was probably a special event for a lot of the connections," Size said. "We're quite happy and relieved for the horse to win a race, and for the owners, who've been sort of believing in him for such a long time."
Avdulla had told the owners before the race that this was the day.
"There's two horses that, every season, just keep turning up for me," he said. "They don't win very often, but him and Beauty Joy, they just turn up every season and run against the best. And I said to the connections today, 'I think it's his turn today.'
"I just thought it was the easiest race he's been in, and all his form has been good. Carrying the 135 today, second-up at 1,200, I just thought today was D-day for him. And we got the right run through, and he was up to getting the job done."
Avdulla knows Zac Purton and Hugh Bowman – now sidelined through injury – usually get first pick of the big-race rides, and said horses like Raging Blizzard keep him in the game.
"If you can have a ride in the good races all the way through, like a Blizzard or a Beauty Joy, they just help you all the time, and you're always in the prize money," he said. "I'm never far away with him, but to actually win a race, and even a Group 2, is very special."
An all-importnat Group Two victory for Brenton Avdulla in the Premier Bowl Handicap. Sing Tao
The record 13-time champion trainer's earlier Premier Bowl winners were Rich Unicorn (2011), Mr Stunning (2017), Hot King Prawn (2018) and Sight Success (2023). Avdulla rode Sight Success, another consistent sprinter rewarded after a long stretch in the shadow of the elite.
Raging Blizzard now meets Ka Ying Rising again in the Group 2 Jockey Club Sprint (1200m) on November 22, the lead-up to the Group 1 Longines Hong Kong Sprint on December 13.
"He's got no options, so he'll go there, and it's a steppingstone to the second Sunday in December," Size said.
