Twin Delight (in yellow) lands an upset win in the Kwangtung Handicap Cup earlier this season.
HKJC
Caspar Fownes is not known as the unofficial king of Happy Valley for nothing and after a remarkable start to the season he hopes to snare another feature at the city circuit with two live chances in Wednesday night's (26 October) Class 1 Hong Kong Country Club Challenge Cup (Handicap).
Fownes is the standout trainer at Happy Valley this season, preparing 13 winners from just 39 runners and winning more than a quarter of all races run at the track this season.
He enters the Class 1 feature over 1650m tomorrow night with two last-start winners, although under different circumstances – Sichuan Dar, who saluted as 4.4 second favourite last month, and Twin Delight (NZ) (Perfectly Ready), who caused a stir with his unexpected 267/1 victory at Sha Tin earlier in September.
"Sichuan Dar is an improving horse, he's done nothing wrong around the Valley, he's handled the track really nicely," Fownes said this morning (Tuesday, 25 October). "He might need a bit of luck as he gets back in his races, but all being equal he should be very competitive.
Twin Delight (127lb) shocked with his narrow victory in the Class 1 Kwangtung Handicap Cup (1400m) at Sha Tin on 11 September, holding off subsequent G3 winner Joyful Trinity to score by a short-head at cricket score odds and sending his domestic rating over 100 for the first time.
"It was a big surprise!" Fownes said with a smile. "A lovely surprise, though. He came through the run well, and this is the track where he has always done well. The big thing for him is that he has the gate (one) to really give us a big sight, so I've got a good two-pronged attack, hopefully we'll run the quinella!"
Zac Purton hops aboard Twin Delight for the first time in almost a year, and hopes that the return to Happy Valley allows the horse to continue in his rich vein of form.
"He's clearly come back well," he said. "I haven't been on his back in work this time in but he's pretty straightforward, from the gate he'll bounce and head forward and hopefully he's good enough to be there at the finish."
2015 G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup (2400m) winner Helene Super Star (130lb) heads the field, which also includes HKG3 Queen Mother Memorial Cup Handicap (2400m) winner Ambitious Champion (122lb) and John Moore-trained pair Harbour Master (126lb) and Basic Trilogy (125lb).
Dennis Yip's All You Wish (127lb), John Size-trained Sergeant Titanium (124lb), Divine Boy (119lb) for Me Tsui and Tony Millard's veteran Super Lifeline (118lb) complete the line-up for the Class 1, which will jump at 9.45pm.
Fownes is the standout trainer at Happy Valley this season, preparing 13 winners from just 39 runners and winning more than a quarter of all races run at the track this season.
He enters the Class 1 feature over 1650m tomorrow night with two last-start winners, although under different circumstances – Sichuan Dar, who saluted as 4.4 second favourite last month, and Twin Delight (NZ) (Perfectly Ready), who caused a stir with his unexpected 267/1 victory at Sha Tin earlier in September.
"Sichuan Dar is an improving horse, he's done nothing wrong around the Valley, he's handled the track really nicely," Fownes said this morning (Tuesday, 25 October). "He might need a bit of luck as he gets back in his races, but all being equal he should be very competitive.
Twin Delight (127lb) shocked with his narrow victory in the Class 1 Kwangtung Handicap Cup (1400m) at Sha Tin on 11 September, holding off subsequent G3 winner Joyful Trinity to score by a short-head at cricket score odds and sending his domestic rating over 100 for the first time.
"It was a big surprise!" Fownes said with a smile. "A lovely surprise, though. He came through the run well, and this is the track where he has always done well. The big thing for him is that he has the gate (one) to really give us a big sight, so I've got a good two-pronged attack, hopefully we'll run the quinella!"
Zac Purton hops aboard Twin Delight for the first time in almost a year, and hopes that the return to Happy Valley allows the horse to continue in his rich vein of form.
"He's clearly come back well," he said. "I haven't been on his back in work this time in but he's pretty straightforward, from the gate he'll bounce and head forward and hopefully he's good enough to be there at the finish."
2015 G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup (2400m) winner Helene Super Star (130lb) heads the field, which also includes HKG3 Queen Mother Memorial Cup Handicap (2400m) winner Ambitious Champion (122lb) and John Moore-trained pair Harbour Master (126lb) and Basic Trilogy (125lb).
Dennis Yip's All You Wish (127lb), John Size-trained Sergeant Titanium (124lb), Divine Boy (119lb) for Me Tsui and Tony Millard's veteran Super Lifeline (118lb) complete the line-up for the Class 1, which will jump at 9.45pm.