Hong Kong’s star four-year-old Golden Sixty (Medaglia D’Oro) heads 14 selected runners for the HK$20 million BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) at Sha Tin Racecourse on Sunday, 22 March.
The brilliant galloper, who was consigned by Riversley Park at the 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sale, has so far dominated the Four-Year-Old Classic Series with impressive wins in the first two legs, the Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) and the Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m), under jockey Vincent Ho.
Should Golden Sixty win the BMW Hong Kong Derby, the Francis Lui-trained galloper would become only the second horse to triumph in all three races in the Series, following Rapper Dragon’s (Street Boss) history-making clean-sweep in 2017.
The Hong Kong Derby was first contested in 1873 and is restricted to four-year-olds.
“The BMW Hong Kong Derby is a champion-making race,” Andrew Harding, the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Executive Director of Racing, said “It is a once-in-a-lifetime challenge that always excites and inspires. Year after year, it is the race that produces our future stars and this season’s eagerly-anticipated edition is framed to continue that legacy.”
“Golden Sixty’s dazzling victories in the first two legs of the Four-Year-Old Classic Series mean that we head into the BMW Hong Kong Derby daring to expect not only the coronation of a star four-year-old, but also the rise of a future champion.”
Golden Sixty bossed his peers in the Hong Kong Classic Mile with an easy length and a quarter success.
He then overcame a troubled preparation and traffic problems in the run as he sprinted home a half-length winner of the Hong Kong Classic Cup.
The latter win took the Medaglia D’Oro gelding’s career record to nine wins from 10 starts but in the Derby his stamina will be tested at a mile and a quarter for the first time.
