The Hong Kong racing season has concluded with the final meeting at Sha Tin on Sunday featuring multiple winners for champion Australian trainer and jockey John Size and Zac Purton and the leading sires list was also topped by Australian bred sires.
World-class trainer John Size became the first trainer to win 12 Hong Kong trainers’ championships. He has trained 1493 winners in Hong Kong and continues to excel with an uncanny ability to patiently develop young talent into elite top-level performers.
Zac Purton clinched his sixth Hong Kong jockeys’ championship with a single-season record of 179 wins.
Newgate Farm’s now pensioned Deep Field topped the Hong Kong sires list by earnings for the second year in a row with 20 HK winners headed by outstanding four year-old Voyage Bubble winner of the HK$24 million Hong Kong Derby (2000m),while his progressive three year-old gelding Howdeepisyourlove was crowned Champion Griffin.
Hot on his heels was Starspangledbanner, who returns to Coolmore Australia this season at a fee of $33,000. Starspangledbanner sired 10 HK winners from 17 runners highlighted by Group I winner California Spangle and dual Group III winner Beauty Eternal, who was awarded the Most Improved Horse of the season.
Beauty Eternal and Howdeepisyourlove joined Horse of the Year Golden Sixty as Australian bred horses honoured in the 2022/2023 racing season.
