Graham Cunningham with 10 things you need to know ahead of Sunday's racing at Sha Tin

10 things you need to know - Sha Tin, Sunday

It’s a trusty format when a scribbler is tight for time and fits this week’s HK Briefing neatly. And, unlike Saturday's big 'race' in Britain, there is nothing virtual about the action on a card with the better part of £2m in prize money on offer at Sha Tin.

1. Battle of the mile stars well worth an early call

Round six between Waikuku and Beauty Generation in the G2 Chairman's Trophy (6.45) is well worth getting up for. The running score is 4-1 for Waikuku and BG's trainer John Moore is hoping John Size's gelding, who has the Champions Mile (April 26) as his big target, is rusty after a break. This will be tight if that's so, but Moore touches on something important in saying his stable star no longer seems capable of sustaining "those dominating sectionals." It's clear Beauty Generation's freewheeling style brings the best out in Waikuku. And recent evidence suggests the younger horse's turn of foot could be decisive again.

2. Lui tempted by Champions Mile option

Severe travel restrictions suggest this year's three Champions Day G1s will lack international raiders but Golden Sixty could add a fascinating dimension to the Champions Mile. The Derby winner is a perfect seven from seven this season and trainer Francis Lui will use the next few days to decide whether to go to the well once more for a race worth almost £2m. "I would say there is a good chance he runs because there is nothing else for the rest of the season," he said. "He has pulled up well from the Derby and we will make a decision next week."

3. Crown prince Aethero on comeback trail

If Beauty Generation is the king of HK racing, younger stablemate Aethero is crown prince. The hulking three-year-old was spectacular in blitzing Hot King Prawn and the rest of a strong field in November but came back with an infection after being run down late in the HK Sprint in December and there are two key possibilities as he returns. One is that Aethero returns refreshed to his blazing best and re-establishes himself as heir to the throne. And the other is that his winter setback has left him vulnerable. Moore has issued mixed media messages, telling one outlet "this is his preliminary bout to get him tuned up and in the zone for the big one (G1 Chairman's Sprint Prize) at the end of the month" and another that "if everything goes right with no hiccups, I think he'll win." How punters assess him after his break will be interesting. But HK's top sprints are a hard school and the prince can't afford any hiccups after almost four months on the sidelines.

4. Prawn poised if Aethero dips

Hot King Prawn probably doesn't have quite so much natural brilliance as Aethero but he has a lot of the qualities you look for in a high-class racehorse. John Size's gelding has an exceptionally relaxed demeanour for a sprinter, which may well have helped him bounce back from colic surgery last year. An uncomplicated ride and exceptionally consistent, he nabbed Aethero for second behind stablemate Beat The Clock in the HK Sprint and has run to a high level every month since, most recently when mastering five of Sunday's rivals under a big weight in a hot Class 1 handicap on his latest start. Hot King Prawn meets all that quintet on better terms here and also has a 5lb pull with Aethero compared to their last meeting. He isn't warming up for anything and that hard conditioning could prove very useful if things get tight.

5. Gibson counts cost of mask misdemeanour

Hong Kong remains on high alert against the threat of coronavirus and, although there is nothing like the lockdown situation in Britain and Ireland, the last week has produced several updates. Pubs and bars have to close at 6pm after a spate of recent infections were traced to music venues, while jockeys have had their weekly saliva swab tests reduced to "just" four. Official attendance at Wednesday's Sha Tin fixture was 46 - all owners with starters - while apprentice Alfie Chan is back on Sunday after self isolation because his girlfriend's employer was a suspected virus victim. Wearing of medical masks remains mandatory. Jockeys wear them on the walk from weighing room to paddock before disposing of them on mounting, while HK's resident English trainer Richard Gibson was caught out on Thursday after being fined £200 for attending the stable compound without facial protection in place.

6. Bravo primed to move the needle again

Very few HK horses move the needle on the scales quite so sharply as the 1256lb Aethero but Ping Hai Bravo strips at 1291lb for Sunday's Homestead Handicap at 10.15 and his snug recent course and distance success marks him out as a very worthy favourite to follow up with Joao Moreira aboard. It's hard to find too many flaws in his case, in truth, but the odds will be tight and the speedy Star Luck - bang in form after two very solid placed efforts - is certainly one to keep onside at longer odds for those who like to play the exotics.

7. Moreira hoping to go Above and beyond

Moreira looks a key factor again in the closing Lugard Handicap (10.50) as he climbs aboard Douglas Whyte's Farhh Above for the first time. The four-year-old has been turned over at 1.7 and 1.5 on his last two starts, meeting heavy traffic on the first occasion then running a flat race last time. Whyte hasn't found a reason for that latest effort but feels Farhh Above "feels fantastic in the mornings" and his reappearance win - hallmarked by a rapid 21.62s closing split - remains fresh in the mind. The addition of Moreira is clearly no hardship, while the fact that capable 5lb claimer Victor Wong takes the reins on lively outsider Craig's Star for the first time is another jockey change worth noting in this £140,000 finale.

8. Karis dominates on dirt

Karis Teetan continues to toil away to maintain his position as HK’s number three rider behind Purton and Moreira and the Mauritian was in top form at Sha Tin’s midweek AW fixture with a treble that took him to 53 winners for the season worth around £7m in prize money. “It’s nice to be third behind those two top jockeys,” he said. “I just want to keep the ball rolling now and keep it going for a good few months.”

9: Waltham on the move after Chantilly romp

No sooner is one Derby over than the search for the next Golden Sixty begins. Leading agent Alastair Donald has been responsible for some exceptional imports to HK over a long period and Christophe Ferland’s Waltham could be the next after bolting up on the AW at Chantilly last month. The Wootton Bassett colt made G1 winner Mkfancy look very one paced under Christophe Soumillon and heads east with a Timeform rating of 112p and a pedigree that suggests the Derby trip of 2000m should suit him well.

10: Hoggy no match for Sha Tin sentries

Animal encroachment is a hot topic in these lockdown days but a wild boar roaming the Tolo Highway outside Sha Tin last Sunday got short shrift from security. A contraceptive vaccine to contain porcine invaders hasn’t had the desired effect and a local lawmaker advised government to curb the population by introducing natural predators last year. Tigers, panthers wolves and large raptors are among the natural predators for boar. On second thoughts...