HK - PERFECT MATCH IN STRONG EARLY SHOWING

By Hong Kong Jockey Club (Declan Schuster) | Sunday, September 6, 2020

Perfect Match landed the spoils in the Class 1 HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup Handicap (1200m) and did so with plenty in hand … and also with December riches in mind, as trainer Danny Shum confirmed the 2020 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint as his long-term target.

“I am aiming him toward December. He will go to the Hong Kong Sprint,” Shum said.

The Not A Single Doubt gelding bagged his eighth career win from 16 starts to push his rating (103 for this test) deeper into triple figures, enhancing his claims on the end of year HK$22 million sprint.

“I think, for me, he is in really good form. He was the best looking horse in the parade ring – so I thought he had a good chance today.”

French ace Alexis Badel agreed: “I’m glad for Danny (Shum) because the horse was very good looking today and he was fit and in very good form, he just proved it.”

The way the five-year-old gelding swept aside his smart rivals in the season’s opening day feature by and easy length and a half will have put the sprint division’s leading players on alert.

“It’s early in the season and because he can handle 1400 metres I thought his class might be better than the 1200 metres horses today. I did worry when he was three-wide but maybe today it didn’t hurt, the outside is the better part of the track,” Shum said.

Shum has a knack of producing winners on the first day. The handler has now won four of the last five editions of the season-opening feature and claimed doubles on opening day in three of the previous four years.

French ace Alexis Badel bagged the first win of his 2020/21 season and acknowledged the importance of striking early.

“It’s very important in Hong Kong to pick up winners very quickly. It makes people happy and the form is there. You just get confidence and it’s even easier to get the good rides, people give you support,” Badel said.

“I think his best trip is 1400 metres,” Badel said of Perfect Match, “so I was quite happy with the draw being a little bit awkward, because I didn’t have to put much pressure on him to get his position and to make him travel. Of course, I was stuck three-deep but I know my horse doesn’t necessarily need cover.”

“I was expecting the horses in front to stop because of the distance and my horse just relaxed, he was too good, I like this horse – he gave everything.”

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