It’s Korea Cup and Korea Sprint weekend! The biggest races of the Korean season will be run at Seoul on Sunday and we will have a full preview over the next couple of days. In the meantime, the weekend’s action kicks off at Busan on Friday with 8 races from 11:50 to 18:00. Here are the previews:

Busan Race 1: Class 6 (1200M) Special Weight A / KRW 60 Million

Juvenile maidens with five of the nine racing for the first time. We’ll side with experience though and after two very good trials, (1) SEVEN DRAGON was sent off as hot favourite on debut over 1000M on August 11^th. After being slightly slowly away, he was ridden up to rejoin the field before running on for a solid 3^rd. He should have come on for that run, the additional furlong can suit, and with a better start this time, he is the one to beat. That will mean overturning the form on (6) HWANG YO, who was 2^nd in that race. That was his second outing having been 3^rd on debut, also in a good time, and the way he ran through the lines suggests he can be a big danger again. (2) BINNANEUNGIL came from a long way back to run 4^th on debut at this distance on June 25^th and with some natural improvement, can go closer here. Among the debut makers, (4) LEMON PIE is the pick while (7) THE BIG SHOT did nothing on debut but has subsequently been back to trial and looked much better.

Selections	(1) Seven Dragon (6) Hwang Yo (2) Binnaneungil (4) Lemon Pie
Next Best	7, 9
Fast Start	1, 3, 6, 7

Busan Race 2: Class 6 (1200M) Special Weight A / KRW 25 Million

An extremely modest maiden with none of the eleven having finished better than 7^th in their respective latest starts. (8) WONDERFUL SMARTY goes around for the thirty-eighth time. She does have fifteen top-five finishes and two starts back registered a career best 2^nd. It’s not impossible she could break through here. (3) SAVAGE GIRL hasn’t done much in six starts but she comes in fresh having last raced in April and she looked well when positing a quick time on an August trial. If she can bring that form to the races, she can go well first-up. (9) WORLD ROYAL CAT has been ordinary in her latest two, but she has a 3^rd place to her name as recently as June and in this limited company, that’s enough to put her in the frame. (11) DAEJI MULGYEOL and (6) GREEN LEGEND other potential improvers.

Selections	(8) Wonderful Smarty (3) Savage Girl (9) World Royal Cat (11) Daeji Mulgyeol
Next Best	6, 7
Fast Start	5, 7, 10, 11

Busan Race 3: Class 6 (1300M) Special Weight A / KRW 25 Million

Another modest maiden, this one involving nine fillies and one colt. (3) VELOCIRAPTOR shapes as the one to beat. Yet to finish in the top two, she has run between 3^rd and 5^th on no fewer than eight occasions and has the fastest time among these for the distance by almost a full second. She likes to settle back and run on but in this company should be a little further forward than usual, and she should prove too strong. The solitary colt is (1) EVERY KING IJI. He has a 2^nd and a 3^rd among his eight appearances so far and has run fair times. He draws well and should be in this a long way. (5) RED JASPER hasn’t done much in three starts so far although she did post a good time at 1200M at the end of July. She has since been back to trial where she raced on pace and stopped the clock in a good time. That brings her into contention here. (9) SSING GA and (4) ILCHUL GOLD others in the placing frame.

Selections	(3) Velociraptor (1) Every King Iji (5) Red Jasper (9) Ssing Ga
Next Best	4, 8
Fast Start	4, 5, 6, 8

Busan Race 4: Class 5 (1200M) Handicap / KRW 40 Million

Fillies and mares only here. (6) OK DREAM was an all the way winner over this distance on debut in April before running 2^nd, having raced handy throughout, on her first try at this class over 1300M on May 25^th. She has had over three months off since then, so she comes in fresh, and she is the one to beat here. (5) BURNING PASSION comes in off back-to-back 3^rd places, both at this class, over 1200M and 1300M. She likes to race on pace and should be challenging for the early lead again and can be in this a long way. (2) HWARANG SHINHWA got her maiden win three starts back and then proved she can compete at this level with a smart 2^nd over this distance on July 30^th when she led for much of the way around. She comes up 2kg in the weights but draws well and should be competitive again. (3) FIRST STAR and (8) TWO TWO LIME others in the hunt.

Selections	(6) OK Dream (5) Burning Passion (2) Hwarang Shinhwa (3) First Star
Next Best	8, 7
Fast Start	2, 5, 6, 9

Busan Race 5: Class 5 (1600M) Handicap / KRW 40 Million

(10) FUSAICHI returned from over six months out to run a good 2^nd at class and distance on August 20^th when he settled a long way back before running on very strongly, beating three of today’s rivals in the process. He comes up 2kg in the weights, but he should strip fitter second-up, the wide draw won’t be an issue, and he can win. The big danger is (2) DOCTOR WICKY He comes up in class having got his maiden win when stepped up to this trip for the first time on August 25^th and making all. He comes down slightly in the weights, he draws well, and he can measure up. (3) TOP FRIEND was 5^th behind Fusaichi in that August 20^th race and while he is yet to win, he has been consistent over this distance and can place again. (5) NALA and (6) NAMDO ILDEUNG among plenty of others with placing chances.  

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