Eagle Mountain soars to swoop Hong Kong Cup

Hong Kong: Eagle Mountain soared at Sha Tin yesterday to claim an emphatic victory in the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Cup.

Mike de Kock's star came through a rough race under Kevin Shea to cruise into position around the turn before unleashing a turn of foot that left his rivals with no answer to triumph by one and a quarter lengths.

French contender Balius ran a huge race to come second with a brave Linngari placing in third.

Owned by Shaikh Mohammad Bin Khalifa Al Maktoum. Eagle Mountain's victory was the second successive year the UAE triumphed in Hong Kong's showpiece race after Ramonti's win 12 months ago.

The proud watching owner, who saw his and de Kock's Archipenko win Hong Kong's QEII Cup in April said: "I don't know why but we are lucky when we come to Hong Kong and I'll try my best to come back here if I have good horses to bring.

"Whenever you come to compete in these types of races you can't ever think that you are definitely going to win but sometimes you win and it's wonderful.

"The horse didn't race for a whole year after he got injured and then when he came back he won over a mile showing very impressive speed, went to the Breeders' Cup where he came second over a mile and a half and now he's won over 2000 metres here. I don't think we have seen the best of him yet either, so the future is exciting," he added.

And de Kock, who performed a superb feat in bringing Eagle Mountain to the best form of its life after nursing him back from a fractured pelvis, said the lay-off helped him win the race.

"The key factor was having him fresh due to the enforced break that he had due to his injury," said de Kock.

"He rested up and recovered at the Shaikh's farm in Al Aweer and there I think he had more dates, olives and honey than the rest of Dubai put together!

"He was very well ridden by Kevin. The other horses pushed around and he had to improvise. Round the turn he travelled very well, just like in the Breeders' Cup, where he was only caught out in the last 150 metres.

"We will now take him back to Dubai and the next time he'll be seen on a track will be Super Thursday and then after that will be either the Dubai Duty Free or the Sheema Classic, which will be a tough decision to make I guess," he added.

In the other Group One international races both Doctor Dino and Good Ba Ba defended the crowns they won in 2007.

In the Vase Richard Gibson's French ace Doctor Dino just held off Luca Cumani's Purple Moon by a short head in a thrilling finish. The winner may now be retired while the unlucky second will next head to Dubai for the Sheema Classic.

Hong Kong's reigning Horse Of The Year Good Ba Ba triumphed in the Mile by 2 ½ lengths. With Christophe Soumillon in the plate the local favourite's blistering run saw break the track record and cement his place in the record books.

There was a shock in the Sprint when Hong Kong's 66/1 outsider Inspiration took the spoils for Darren Beadman and trainer John Moore.