Meet the new boss - same as the old boss.
Hong Kong's master miler Beauty Generation returned from a five-month break looking as dominant as ever at Sha Tin on Tuesday with a record-breaking victory in the Celebration Cup.
John Moore's gelding turned seven recently and was forced to concede between 14lb and 20lb to some very smart rivals in his bid to land the G3 handicap for the third year in a row.
His flawless 2018-2019 campaign meant he was racing from an 11lb higher rating than when cruising home in 2018 but Beauty Generation looked as good as ever under Zac Purton, taking over from the freewheeling Ka Ying Star early in the home straight and beating the previous 1400m track record by over a quarter of a second as he passed the post clear of that rival and Irish import Waikuku.
#TheBoss is back! Can Beauty Generation make it 10 wins in a row in today's G3 Celebration Cup? #HKracing pic.twitter.com/jgyK0X7tBf
— HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) October 1, 2019
Purton has been aboard Beauty Generation throughout a golden run stretching back to April 2018 and feels his partner has gone from strength to strength during that time.
"He's just an amazing horse," he said. "To do what he does defies logic. No other horse all day has run into the headwind on the pace down the far side and still compete at the finish but he did.
"He's just playing around a bit at the moment and it was good to have something there for him to focus and follow. The way he was I thought that if I took it up myself he would have floated along a little bit to much so I kept him honest and he gave me what I wanted."
Beauty Generation destroys them! Track record, top-weight, first-up and he gets a perfect 10. #TheBoss #HKracing pic.twitter.com/4Ng5RCEQfp
— HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) October 1, 2019
Suggestions that winning owner Patrick Kwok might sanction a raid on Royal Ascot for the Queen Anne Stakes this summer came to nothing but Moore is mindful that this will be the last season of his glittering career and would love to see his stable star take his show on the road in 2020.
A handful of major HK prizes are on the agenda before then - including a third LONGINES Hong Kong Mile in December - but the veteran handler feels that the Dubai Turf at Meydan next March could be an ideal target for a horse whose sixteen HK wins have now earned him almost £9m in prize money.
"If everything goes to plan then Dubai is definitely on the cards," he said. "It's the twilight of my career and I'd love to take him there and let the world see how good he is."
