Wyong Preview & Best Bets - Wednesday January 18
Hong Kong Preview & Best Bets – Wednesday January 18
Hong Kong Tips 18/01/2023
Our form expert provides Hong Kong tips for tonight’s horse racing at Happy Valley Racecourse and gives his best bets.
BEST BET 🏆
Race 8: No.2 CALIFORNIA DEEPLY ($2.70 with bet365)
The Tony Cruz-trained CALIFORNIA DEEPLY shoots for the hat-trick tonight and with a confident jockey on board, he will take some beating here. Last start, the Deep Field gelding made it back-to-back to wins at the track and distance when he beat home a 14-strong Class 3 field, here over the 1000m sprint. With Luke Ferraris aboard, he railed like a greyhound that night and taking full advantage of the ground he saved, the three-year-old hit the line strongly to win by more than a length on the line, with plenty to spare. He ran that out, 6.5 lengths quicker than benchmark, the best in this line-up and covered his last 600m, 7 lengths better than standard, also the best here. On top of that, he also recorded the fastest final 800m to 200m sectionals for the event. Ferraris sticks with tonight and said in an interview yesterday, “He’s going very nicely. He’s got a great turn of foot on him, and he’s trialled up well since his last win, so hopefully he can maintain his form,” (a quote from Hong Kong Racing, 17/01/23). We are predicting he will as he gets the gun-run from gate one tonight, making him our best on the card.
NEXT BEST 🥈
Race 5: No.2 RATTAN KINGDOM ($2.70 with bet365)
New Zealand trainer Jamie Richards saddles-up RATTAN KINDOM here who looks well placed to bring up the hat-trick tonight. Last start, the Per Incanto gelding made it back-to-back wins at Happy Valley when he took out a Class 4 Hcp over 1200m. He ran a new personal best that night, covering the journey, 5.2 lengths quicker than benchmark, also the best in this field by more than 2 lengths. Zac Purton rode him a real treat, having him box-seating on settling and in the run home, he took control and never really looked like losing. Purton sticks with him tonight and draws well again in gate five. He maps to run a similar race here and will take a power of beating in this contest.
BEST VALUE 💰
Race 7: No.9 JUMBO LEGEND ($3.80 with Ladbrokes)
The Caspar Fownes-trained JUMBO LEGEND is in career best form this time in and looks well placed here at the weights and the gates to bring up career win number three tonight. Last start, the Hinchinbrook gelding made it four-straight podium finishes when he crossed the line in third place in a Class 3, here over 1200m. The race was tailor-made for the favourite (Beauty Tycoon) that night (also our Best Bet for the meeting) and he saluted accordingly, but was chased all the way home by Jumbo Legend who was doing his best work late. He ran the trip out, 3.3 lengths quicker than benchmark that night, the best in this field. The step up in distance tonight looks ideal for him at this stage of his preparation and Vince Ho sticks with him here, in sight of his fifth-straight podium finish on the four-year-old. Rock-hard fit after five runs back and no Beauty Tycoon to worry about, he looks the one to best here.
