Glorious Forever clinches HK Cup
hong kong — Glorious Forever sealed a clinical victory at the Hong Kong Cup on Sunday at the city’s Longines International Races, one of the world’s richest race meetings with a total purse of almost $12 million.
Star Brazilian jockey Silvestre de Sousa dominated the race from start to finish with the four-yearold gelding, and completed the 2,000-metre course in just over two minutes and one second.
French rider Christophe Lemaire finished second on Deirdre, while Time Warp, ridden by Australian jockey Zac Purton, finished third.
“I didn’t want to overdo it in front but to make sure Time Warp didn’t come around, I had to make sure we were going a true gallop,” de Sousa said after the race.
“I won the battle for the first 300 metres and I was going so well at the 800 (metres), I thought to myself they would have to be very good to pick him up.”
The Hong Kong Cup is the highlight of the four Group One events at the annual meet at Shatin Racecourse — which also includes the Hong Kong Mile, the Hong Kong Sprint and the Hong Kong Vase.
It is also the city’s richest race with a total prize money of HK$28 million ($3.6 million), up from last year’s HK$25 million.
Sunday marked the first time Hong Kong-trained horses took the crown in all four of the Longines races, the Hong Kong Jockey Club said.
Star gelding Beauty Generation snapped up the the Mile event in a clean sweep for champion jockey Zac Purton. The sixyear-old stormed far ahead of the pack to the finish line, recreating last year’s front-running performance in its first Group One win. —