WINNO - LIVE FROM HONG KONG: FOWNES HOPING TO SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT IN THE HONG KONG CUP

By Darren Winningham | Tuesday, December 3, 2019

CASPER FOWNES ON FIRE IN THE LEAD UP TO LONGINES INTERNATIONAL RACE DAY 2019

Caspar Fownes has enjoyed a perfect lead up for the biggest week in Hong Kong racing, posting a double at Sha Tin on Sunday while seeing his biggest rival for the Longines Hong Kong Cup fall by the wayside.

The withdrawal of Japanese superstar Almond Eye on Saturday morning was a big blow to the event, robbing it of a genuine international superstar, but there is a silver lining for those eight remaining in the race – they’ve now got a live shot at the HK$28 million contest.

Almond Eye was withdrawn just hours before boarding a flight to Hong Kong with an elevated temperature whilst in quarantine.

Almond Eye’s Silk Racing is a wonderful racing story for Japanese racing with the ownership being made up of hundreds of individuals. The thrill of landing eight wins from just ten career starts and having a champion turned into a big disappointment for many of the first-time owners when the trip was abandoned.

Fownes will saddle up the brilliant Rise High in the Group One and he is now rated a $5.50 chance in Australian corporate bookmaker markets.

“For me, we’re very happy – my horse is in good form going into the race. We’ve just got another week to keep him cherry ripe and hopefully we can put in a big effort”, said Fownes.

The five-year-old gelding ended Beauty Generation’s winning streak in October’s Group Two Oriental Watch Sha Tin Trophy before finishing fourth in the Jockey Club Cup last start and he’s gone from being a good place chance to a definite winning hope.

This prestigious race has eluded Casper Fownes - maybe history will be made on Sunday?

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