Leung Ho Yin, Simon's Bio
Simon is a well respected full-time thoroughbred racing commentator specializing in overseas international racing. Bringing with him a wealth of racing knowledge, Simon is the host and race caller for the overseas simulcast programme since 2008/09 season. He is currently the presenter on several racing television programmes including, ‘Banker’, ‘Racing Horizon’ and ‘Horse Racing – Results’.

Kenilworth Racecourse – Track Analysis (Met Day):

Nestled in Cape Town, the left-handed Kenilworth Racecourse is probably one-of-its-kind in featuring three tracks: the Old Course, in use for the bulk of the winter season, that is 2700m in circumference; the 2800m New Course that caters for summer racing, and a separate 1200m chute that streaks right through the infield area.

As one of the marquees high-lighting the ‘The Summer of Champions’ over December and January of each year in the South African racing calendar, the Met Day will entirely be staged on the New Course, where all fields racing through the far turn will navigate mostly a leveled course, except for a slight incline deep into the final 200m. For the main feature – The Met contested at 2000m – runners will travel the full 600m homestretch before hitting the first turn, and is truly good news for outside-drawn runners, as they would have all the time they need to find coverage or be sent forward. In the 2019 edition of this G1 event staged on good to firm goings, HEAD HONCHO, who blitzed the field up front most of the way, faded inside the final 100m or so, giving way to eventual winner RAINBOW BRIDGE, who swung to the clear and rallied from out wide after a rail-skimming trip in mid-pack early, while DO IT AGAIN, closing from further back, sneaked up on the fence for a late second.

Onto the day’s undercard, runners drawing high numbers in both the CTS 1600 and the Majorca Stakes will have only a brief 200m run-in to the first turn, and need to save as much ground as possible, or be parked wide and possibly lose some balance through that wicked turn. Thankfully, with the aforementioned 600m stretch run, deep closers, as they find their balance and momentum, still have all the real property they need to close from far back. In contrast, the 1800m Politician Stakes will have a full 400m stretch run on the backside before taking the first turn; together with a more sedate early pace in a route, a bad stall is still manageable as compared to the 1600m trip.

Meanwhile, for both the 1200m CTS 1200 and the 1000m Cape Flying Championship to grace the chute, runners will race up-hill with about 200m to go, and those from the middle or outside part of this chute would enjoy a better trip; whereas for the 2800m Western Cape Stayers that navigates one full lap of this New Course, the starting gate is positioned immediately after passing the finishing post, thus runners are literally breaking into the first turn. That said, with again a much more dawdling early pace in a deep route, the barrier draw generally bears little significance.

With continued sunshine that basks the Cape Town area as of late, cloudy skies – but little precipitation, and thus a good turf strip – is on deck for this year’s edition of the Met Day. Should that be the case, runners breaking from middle or outside post positions would enjoy a slight edge on the chute, while a balanced selection that includes different running styles is more preferred for contests on the course proper.

Disclaimer:
The above content and information are the personal views and/or opinions of each individual writer and do not represent the views of The Hong Kong Jockey Club and/or its subsidiaries (together, the "HKJC"). The content and information are provided by the writers solely for entertainment purpose only, and should not be construed as a suggestion for anyone to place any bet nor should they be taken and/or relied upon as advice of any kind. The above content and information have not been verified, confirmed and/or endorsed by HKJC and HKJC shall not be liable to any person for any loss or damage suffered by such person as a result of any use or reliance of the above content or information.

HKJC shall not be required to give and does not give any warranty, whether express or implied, arising out of or in connection with the content or information. The Club disclaims any responsibility and accepts no liability (whether in tort, contract or otherwise) for any direct or indirect loss of damage arising from any inaccuracies, omission or typographical errors that may be contained therein. The Club also does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness or fitness for purpose of any such information.