Hong Kong’s latest addition to the jockey ranks, Nichola Yuen Hang-yiu, scored a sensational double for her master Ricky Yiu Poon-fai at Sha Tin on Sunday.
Flashing Fighter gave Yuen the first leg of her brace in the first section of the Class Four Hart Handicap (1,200m) before the apprentice struck on Fortune Link in the Class Three Jordan Handicap (1,400m).
Continuing on her sensational run at Sha Tin, Yuen has now secured four wins within her first 12 days on the Hong Kong roster.
“First of all, thank you so much to Ricky and [assistant trainer and son] Eric, they give me so many opportunities and it is great to have my first double here in Sha Tin and especially for my boss,” Yuen said.
“I want to thank the Hong Kong Jockey Club, the Apprentices’ School, [headmistress] Ms Amy Chan [Lim-chee] and [chief riding instructor] Mr Felix Coetzee. They have given me great support and I am very fortunate to be here on this very big stage and to have a great performance on good horses.”
Yiu was thrilled to see Yuen ride a winner for him at just her third meeting in Hong Kong.
“Happy about it. It was a bit earlier than I expected, but they will keep coming. She’s had a good start to her career [in Hong Kong],” Yiu said.
It was the perfect way to begin Flashing Fighter’s career when saluting at his first race start. After showing superb gate speed from an inside barrier, Yuen sat outside the leader and took over in the straight, sticking on in the final 100m to hold off Spicy Standard and score by a short head.
“He’s a good type of horse for a young apprentice – he’s a front-running type or can sit second and it makes it easier for her. Obviously she claimed 10lb – he had a light weight and the draw and he had been trialling very well, so we expected him to finish in the first three,” Yiu said.
Yiu is hoping to see the quantity of Yuen’s rides lifted so that he can utilise her more.
“For the time being, her rides are restricted to maybe six or seven a meeting. Maybe they will allow her to ride more – eight or nine – but I will communicate with the Apprentice Jockeys’ School and hopefully I can pick more good rides for her,” Yiu said.
Australian import Fortune Link saluted at his Hong Kong debut, having registered a win at Cranbourne pre-import. Yuen once again showed her ability to get a horse out of the gates when the pair sped across to find the lead from barrier 12. The Capitalist galloper showed a fighting kick up the straight to shake off All’s Well and hold the late challenge from Endeared to win by a nose.
“It was an even better ride than her last winner. There’s a lot of upside, I can be optimistic that she’ll keep learning and she’ll do well,” Yiu said.
Yiu was impressed with how Yuen handled the four-year-old, who is still a work in progress.
“Although this time it wasn’t really a good draw, we still managed to hit the front. As I said to her, this horse is very green and is scared of everything. It’s a horse that will love to go to the front and be chased by the other horses, rather than him chase others. I really wanted her to lead, it makes a huge difference,” Yiu said.
The decision to remove the blinkers, which Fortune Link had become accustomed to in Australia, turned out to be a winning move.
“I wanted him to run without the blinkers for the first time [in Hong Kong] to give him a chance to just see a bit more,” Yiu said.
Yiu will plan to keep the gelding in Class Three company for the foreseeable future.
“We’ll see what happens, to be honest, he might not be a Class Two horse. But he’ll do a job in Class Three,” Yiu said.
