DUBAI MAR 24 - HONG KONG HOPES SETTLE IN WELL

By - Courtesy of the Hong Kong Jockey Club | Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Hong Kong's three hopes for the Dubai World Cup meeting on Saturday night are said by connections to be thriving in the surroundings of the gleaming new Meydan track and hopes are rising for a victory at the richest meeting ever staged.

For a start, the prospects for both sprint envoys -Joy And Fun in the Al Quoz Sprint and One World in the Dubai Golden Shaheen - have been enhanced by encouraging draws.

Joy And Fun drew a middle berth in six for his mission down the 1200m turf chute, while One World has been allocated the inside gate in the US$ 2 million Golden Shaheen on the new all-weather surface.

On Wednesday morning, One World did his main piece of work for the week on the Tapeta surface he will race on and drew positive remarks from jockey Darren Beadman in the saddle.

"We didn't go too hard, about three-quarter pace, but he felt great. The most important things were that on the turn he changed leads exactly when I wanted him to and he feels really comfortable on the surface," he said.

Concerning the allocation of stall one, Beadman continued: "It's great. He might well have won the (Cathay Pacific Hong Kong) Sprint in December if he hadn't drawn so wide so I have no complaints this time.

"He has plenty of gate-speed so we should be able to get a handy position. The horse has travelled over well and feels every bit as good as he would be at home."

Ahead of his date in the US$ 5 million Dubai Duty Free, Good Ba Ba, meanwhile, is revelling in his new environment, trainer Derek Cruz reported after riding him in "a 1200m spin about three-quarter pace" on Tuesday morning.

"I don't know which of us enjoyed that gallop more, the horse or me?

"Everything has gone really well with his preparation and he loved the surface. It has a really nice covering of grass and a nice cushion to it and he bounces off it," Cruz said.

Good Ba Ba's two previous international forays resulted in him finishing 7th and 17th in the Yasuda Kinen of 2007 and 2008 round a similarly left-handed circuit in Tokyo for his previous trainer, but Cruz was not prepared to read too much into events past.

"I rode him myself this morning and he was true around the bend for me. He didn't lay out in the slightest so I am not expecting any trouble that way.

"He's that bit more experienced now, too, and he's a very happy horse going into the race in top shape," he added.

On Wednesday morning, Good Ba Ba lobbed along gently on the all-weather with stablemate Joy And Fun whose progress at Meydan - and his midfield gate - has also pleased Cruz.

"He was upsides me in the gallop yesterday and my assistant John Mok rode him. His work was just as good as 'Ba Ba'. His draw in six for Saturday night is good, too. He'll probably tuck in just behind the pace and hopefully finish off strongly.

"He's never been down a straight 1200m before but it won't trouble him and I don't see why he can't run up to his best. If he can, his third in the (Cathay Pacific) Hong Kong Sprint last December must see him go pretty close in this," Cruz concluded.

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