On a Sunday afternoon when Hong Kong racing celebrated Golden Sixty’s glittering career at Sha Tin, apprentice Britney Wong snared her first Hong Kong win with Douglas Whyte-trained Cheval Valiant’s all-the-way victory in the race named after one of the city’s greatest champions – the Class 4 Golden Sixty Handicap over 1000m.
Wong, 25, is the first Hong Kong-born female jockey to ride a winner in the city since Kei Chiong in July, 2017, and is apprenticed to David Hall after spending two years in Australia where she rode 50 winners.
Douglas Whyte and Britney Wong are all smiles after the milestone victory (Pic – HKJC)
“It panned out perfect for me, actually. To be fair, this horse has natural gate speed and he loves to lead and be left alone. Definitely, the 10-pound (allowance) helped a lot today and also the rain. Mr Whyte gave me very clear instructions before the race – just make sure he jumped clean and if he can get into his own rhythm, he will be happy,” Wong said. “We did everything right and the result came right.
“It means a lot to me and, at the same time, it’s a bit unreal because I’ve only ridden two years in Australia and a little bit of time in New Zealand and it’s such a big step up for me to ride in Hong Kong and also getting my first (Hong Kong) winner in just my third meeting here is really unreal.”
Whyte said Wong’s tactical awareness on Cheval Valiant was a key factor.
“He’s a good beginner, but he can go too hard sometimes and then he’s vulnerable at the end. Britney did a very good job allowing him not to run away too early. She held him back and from the 600m she started to let him go, which I asked her to do, and she put a gap on them. I think that was the winning move – they had to then chase her as opposed to her being run down,” Whyte said.
“All in all, she held herself together very well under pressure, riding a favourite, beginning as best as she could and riding a very heady race. She was composed and she did a good job.
“I’ve been impressed with that so it was just a matter of time for her to find the right opportunity and ride with confidence, which she did, and she deserved that.”
Hong Kong racing continues at Happy Valley on Wednesday, 25 September, with the start of the DBS x Manulife Million Challenge. Remember to get your Hollywoodbets Punters’ Challenge on five minutes before the first!
