Author: gyongmaman

Vicar Love Keeps Bally Brae in the Gloom

Bally Brae beaten / Bop’s Punch wins / Chavez debuts
Punters kept faith with Bally Brae, but it was Vicar Love who got back to winning ways in the big race at a foggy Seoul Race Park this afternoon. Bally Brae may not have won since last March, but his second place in the Grand Prix indicated that the big gelding was ready to win again and he went off favourite ahead of Seoul Teukgeup who had the beating of him throughout last autumn.

As the field broke, Bally Brae took up his customary position just off the lead, but as they turned into the back straight, Cho Kyoung Ho gave up trying to restrain the fractious Pocketful of Money, and the mare shot away from the pack, stringing out the field behind her. Only Bally Brae, Seoul Teukgeup and Vicar Love remained in touch with the rest out of sight.

Turning for home, inevitably Pocketful of Money was spent and it was Vicar Love, with Oh Kyoung Hoan at the controls for the first time, who was first to pass and take up the lead a furlong out. Bally Brae bore down the centre of the track, while Seoul Teukgeup was finishing the fastest of all three. The line came soon enough, however, for Vicar Love to take the honours by a length and a half with just a Neck seperating Bally Brae and Seoul Teukgeup. Saerounbisul put in a fast final furlong to almost bridge the gap with the rest well beaten.

Despite the fog, it was a dry and mild day and earlier, promising US import Bop’s Punch [Bop – French Punch (Two Punch)] continued his progress in landing race 5 by an impressive five lengths. Kim Dong Min took the colt into the lead straight out of the gate and there they stayed for a comfortable wire to wire win. Also finally tasting victory was the Ft. Stockton colt Love For Ever, who justified his odds on status by taking race 6 by four lengths.

Moon Se Young took the jockey honours completing a treble by the end of race four. Moon later tarnished his day somewhat by picking up a 2 day ban for careless riding while guiding favourite Pop’s Slew to defeat in race 8. American jockey Santos Chavez debuted this afternoon finishing well out of the money on both his mounts. Chavez will have two more rides tomorrow, including one in the feature race.

Racing returns tomorrow with cards at Seoul (11:10), Busan (12:30) and Jeju (12:30).

Class 1 (Foreign Bred) – Seoul Race Park – 2000M – Feb 7, 2009

1. Vicar Love (USA) [Vicar – Canberra (Silver Hawk)] – Oh Kyoung Hoan – 5.1
2. Bally Brae (USA) [Yarrow Brae – Political Bluff (Unaccounted For)] – Moon Se Young – 1.7
3. Seoul Teukgeup (USA) [Safely’s Mark – Bemmalou (Waquoit)] – Moon Jung Kyun – 3.0
Distances – 1.5 lengths/Neck – 8 ran

FULL RESULTS FROM SEOUL

Miss Ecton Makes Light Work of Golding

After injury and then indifference, Miss Ecton demonstrated that she has regained her form of early last year in taking a three length win in the feature race at Busan Race Park this afternoon. After winning the Busan Ilbo Cup last March, the filly was sidelined until August and out in disappointing performances for the rest of the year. Today, with four kilos on favourite Dongbang Geona and eight kilos over Golding, she took full advantage.

Third favourite Sinsapung made the early running and was still in front as they entered the home straight of the 1600 metre race. Dongbang Geona, who had been sitting just off the lead, looked poised to strike, but it was Miss Ecton who came out of the pack to hit the front in the final furlong under Ikuyasu Kurakane. Golding went with her but the seven year old never looked likely to make up enough ground to challenge.

Racing tomorrow is at Seoul and Jeju, with all three tracks hosting cards on Sunday.

Class 1 (Foreign bred) – Busan Race Park – 1600M – Feb 6, 2009

1. Miss Ecton (USA) [Ecton Park – Miss Lion King (Lion Cavern)] – I Kurakane – 12.4
2. Golding (USA) [Gold Alert – Ritzy Lady (Kissin Kris)] – Gu, YJ – 3.0
3. Dongbang Geona (JPN) [Paradise Creek – Hanashinju (Leo Castelli)] – Kim, ES – 2.3
Distances: 3 lengths/0.5 lengths – 13 ran

FULL RESULTS FROM BUSAN

Weekend Preview

Areumdaun Jilju, Golding, Bally Brae in action / Chavez debuts

Areumdaun Jilju makes his 2009 debut in Busan’s feature on Sunday giving a full six kilos to a field of ten including Procyon, Boryeong Bulbit and Luna. Aremundaun Jilju has won 12 of his 18 career starts. Heading Friday’s card will be Golding, the now seven year old gelding going over 1600M. Meanwhile, up at Seoul, 2007 Grand Prix winner Bally Brae will be the biggest name appearing, in a compeitive field with Vicar Love, Seoul Teukgeup and Saerounbisul in race 11 on Saturday.

American jockey Santos Chavez will make his Seoul debut on Saturday. The 47 year old will be the oldest jockey at Seoul and has a six month license. Chavez has career figures of 7623 rides, with 894 wins and 910 seconds. Despite a career which has taken him to the UK, Belgium, France, the UK, Saudi Arabia and Peru as well as the US, he appears to have been relatively inactive in recent years. Chavez, who will be known as “Santos” on the race card will have two rides on Saturday.

Busan Race Park

Friday February 6: 10 races with the first at 13:00
Sunday February 8: 6 races, first post at 12:30

Seoul Race Park

Saturday February 7: 12 races, first off at 11:10
Sunday February 8: 11 races, first off at 11:10

Jeju Race Park hosts cards on both Saturday and Sunday with nine races on each day. Weather conditions in both Seoul and Busan are forecast to be mild and dry all weekend.

Dongbanui Gangja Strolls Home

Grand Prix winner opens 2009 account in style / Myeongmun Gamun regresses
Dongbanui Gangja started 2009 as he ended 2008, cruising to victory in this afternoon’s feature at Seoul Race Park. Starting long odds-on favourite, the Grand Prix winner left it late to come round the field in the home straight to claim a six length win from Angus Empire and Obaek Yechan. While third favourite Gamadongja set the early pace before fading, Brilliant Knight, stepping up to class 1 for the first time, was never a threat eventually finishing in ninth.

Yesterday at Seoul, Myeongmun Gamun was back up to his old tricks, proving a headache for handlers to get into the stalls. Seoul’s top earner was eventually cajoled into racing but, despite a late rally that propelled him to third place, never looked likely to take top honours. Instead it was the mare Top Point who finished the strongest, overhauling Secret Weapon in the final furlong for a two length win.

* Pick Me Up’s return to racing on Korean soil ended in defeat at Busan on Friday as Sinheung Gangja scored an impressive four length win in the feature race. Ebony Storm came in second with Pick Me Up, who had been front running for most of the race, dropping to fourth on the line.

Class 1 (Foreign Bred) – Seoul Race Park – 2000M – Feb 1, 2009
1. Dongbanui Gangja (USA) [Broken Vow – Maremaid (Storm Bird)] – Choi Beom Hyun – 1.3
2. Angus Empire (USA) [Lion Cavern – Clever Dorothy (Clever Trick)] – Yang Hee Jin – 7.3
3. Obaek Yechan (AUS) [High Yield – Kanaka Creek (Thunder Gulch)] – Kim Ok Sung – 33.5
Distances: 6 lengths/2.5 lengths – 12 ran

Class 1 (Domestic Bred) – Seoul Race Park – 2000M – Jan 31, 2009
1. Top Point (KOR) [Tom Cruiser – Mooncello (Northern Baby)] – Moon Se Young – 3.7
2. Secret Weapon (KOR) [Native regent – Aheadofthetimes (Gold Alert)] – Park Tae Jong – 3.6
3. Myeongmun Gamun (KOR) [Future Quest – Guided Dancer (Incinderator)] – Cho, KH – 1.7
Distances: 2 lengths/1 length – 10 ran

FULL RESULTS FROM SEOUL

FULL RESULTS FROM BUSAN

Weekend Preview

Season Debuts for Dongbanui Gangja, Myeongmun Gamun, Pick Me Up
A host of big name horses will take to the track this weekend as racing returns after the Lunar New Year break. Grand Prix winner Dongbanui Gangja makes his first appearance of 2009 at Seoul Race Park on Sunday and will be giving four kilos to Brilliant Knight, the gelding with five wins from his first six starts stepping up in class. On Saturday, Myeongmun Gamun, the top Korean bred horse at Seoul also makes his season debut, going head to head with Secret Weapon who’ll be looking to bounce back from a disappointing run in the Grand Prix.

Down at Busan, Pick Me Up will run for the first time since returning from the US. The seven year old will carry top weight in the feature handicap on Friday, a race that also features last year’s Derby winner Ebony Storm.

Busan Race Park
Friday January 30: 10 races, first post time 13:00
Sunday February 1: 6 races, first post time 12:30

Seoul Race Park:
Saturday January 31: 12 races, first post time 11:10
Sunday February 1: 11 races, first post time 11:10

Jeju Race Park will host 9 races on both Saturday and Sunday.

Reforms as Regulator Still Hovers

KNetz to go but Trifecta comes to Korea / 2009 the year of the Filly & Mare
Last September, this site wrote about the National Gaming Control Commission (NGCC) and its attempts to essentially outlaw gambling in Korea. At the time, racing was seemingly very much under threat with the KRA collecting signatures in support of its fight against the commission and the Gangwon Land casino – the only casino open to Korean citizens – admitting it feared the worst as its share price plummeted. The apocalyptic scenario that some were discussing back then seems to have been averted for the time being, but it is with regulation very much in mind that a number of changes have been made to the 2009 racing season.

The NGCC is sticking by its main goal. That is, it wants to see the total amount wagered on all forms of gambling limited. The figure it has set is KRW 14 Trillion per year (around US$13 Billion). This applies to racing, casinos, the lottery, track cycling and motor boat racing. As the economic situation has worsened, however, the commission seems to have accepted that these legal forms of gambling are not necessarily the problem. Instead it is illegal gambling which, while always common in a country where the maximum legal amount you can bet on a horse is $80, according to anecdotal evidence is rapidly on the increase and the NGCC’s focus would be appear to be shifting towards this area rather than to legal betting on racing.

So far, the NGCC’s only tangible impact upon racing has been to order the KRA to shut down its internet and mobile “KNetz” betting service. Additionally, in response to the regulatory threat, the KRA has chosen to run four fewer days of racing in 2009, a total of 33 less races than last year. While the KRA’s own aim to get the KRW 100,000 single bet limit increased may be very much on hold, these seem small prices to pay compared with what was envisaged back in the autumn.

At the same time, the KRA is aiming to get as much of that KRW 14 Trillion spent at the track instead of on the lottery as possible. From April, a sixth type of bet is going to be available as the Trifecta finally arrives in Korea. It is expected that there will be a marketing campaign aimed at current lottery players advising them of the far better odds – not to mention fun – that the trifecta will offer, will be launched.

On the racing side of things 2009 sees some changes too. Primarily there is going to be a much greater focus on fillies and mares. In 2008, just 2% of races were designated for female horses. This is to rise to 10% this year – essentially one race per card. Perhaps even more significantly, the amount that owners are permitted to spend on imported horses has doubled to $40,000 – but only for female horses. This threshold, in place to protect the local breeding industry, has been a major impediment to getting quality horses onto the Korean track and encouraging trainers to raise their game and produce better horses. The final racing change for 2009 is that the minimum number of starters for Stakes races has been reduced from seven to five.

Overall, there is still a threat. It is entirely possible that for political reasons, the deeply unpopular government may decide to suddenly introduce legislation to ban all gambling. For now, however, it seems as though the KRA will reluctantly take its medicine, in the form of the KNetz ban, and get on with things. Indeed, track turnover is predicted to rise by 13% this year. Even though the Korea Times chose to portray this as a sign of a “Depression trauma” society, it seems we can look forward to the 2009 season with optimism that we can concentrate on what’s happening on the track, rather than off it.

Pick Me Up Entered at Busan

Recently home from his vacation in the United States, Pick Me Up is a possible starter at Busan Race Park this coming Friday. The now seven year old gelding spent the autumn at Maryland’s Fair Hill Training Center racing three times at Laurel and Delaware Park and predictably not making much of an impact, trotting round at the back of the field all three times. Pick Me Up is one of twenty one early entries for Friday’s feature, a nine furlong handicap. Among them are two of 2008’s Classic winners in Derby winner Ebony Storm and KRA Cup Mile winner Rainmaker, now recovered from the injury he sustained in the Minister’s Cup.

Also entered next weekend is Golding, one of twenty eight possibles for Sunday’s Busan feature. The field for both races will be narrowed down to fourteen by Wednesday. Up at Seoul, we could see a season debut for Dongbanui Gangja. The Grand Prix winner is pencilled in to take on Brilliant Knight, winner of five of his six starts, over ten furlongs next Sunday.

* In other news from Seoul, the KRA have added another overseas jockey to their roster. No details have been released as yet as to his identity, except the family name “Santos”. More information when we get it.

Weekend Preview – Happy Lunar New Year!!

There’s no racing across the peninsula this weekend as Koreans prepare for the Lunar New Year holiday – or “Soellal” – which falls on Monday. The break couldn’t have come at a better time as the next couple of days are expected to be the coldest of the winter so far with temperatures having already dropped to -9 and expected to bottom out at -12 on Saturday.

The extended public holiday lasts until Tuesday and is one of the two main Korean holidays – the other being “Chuseok” in Autumn – that racing, along with the rest of the country, shuts down for. Things will be back to normal next weekend with Busan Race Park the first to host a card on Friday January 30.

Good Day For Seonju Jangsu

Seonju Jangsu produced a sparkling final furlong to find herself back in the Winner’s Enclosure for the first time since 2006 in the feature race at Seoul Race Park this afternoon. Hot favourite Good Day led for the first nine furlongs of the ten furlong race, but when it came to the business end of the home straight, the top weight had nothing left to give and it was the seven year old mare Seonju Jangsu who led outsider Dalgane and perennial placer Nujindo through, Seonju Jangsu winning by four lengths on the line.

Winning three of her first five races back in 2005, Seonju Jangsu never really lived up to that early promise finishing eighth in the Oaks that year. Since then, while regularly finishing in the money, victories have been scarce. For Good Day it was another unexpected setback and the five year old is now without a win in four outings having gone off as favourite on all those occasions.

In Busan’s feature, Gyeoncheonsa notched her second straight win to continue her recent renaissance under trainer Peter Wolsley. The mare, who was off the track for a year and a half before returning in mid 2008, held off the fast finishing Cherokee Morn for a half length win.

FULL RESULTS FROM SEOUL

FULL RESULTS FROM BUSAN

Wait Goes On for Subsidy

Noubeau Riche takes advantage / New Kaiser, Event beaten
As the field entered the home straight, it looked as though Subsidy was going to take his career earnings through the Billion Won mark with a win in this afternoon’s big race at Seoul Race Park. Having sat just behind the leaders for most of the mile and a quarter race, Moon Se Young shifted the gelding off the rail and into a gap, then asked him to go. Uncharacteristically, there was no response from Subsidy. Meanwhile, third favourite Noubeau Riche grabbed the lead and, in a tight finish, held off Haengun Daewang and Serendipper to take the win.

It was Subsidy’s third failed attempt at achieving the Billion figure and, in finishing sixth, equalled his worst ever placing in his five year career in Seoul. For now Myeongmun Gamun remains the only horse at the track to have over a Billion Won in the bank and Subsidy, the nine year old son of Mr Prospector, must wait a little longer. Meanwhile Noubeau Riche, entering his five year old season takes his record to seven wins from thirteen outings.

On a day which began with temperatures well below zero and with yesterday’s snow still on the ground but gradually got warmer until it was a positively tropical three degrees above, there weree defeat for three year old Derby possibles New Kaiser and Event. Coming off the back of four straight wins, Event made step up from seven to nine furlongs and, after leading through the first three turns, didn’t stay and faded to last. New Kaiser, unbeaten in two previous appearances also led early on in his race over seven furlongs but similarly faded from view in the straight.

Aside from the defeat on Subsidy, Champion jockey Moon Se Young was back in form landing his first treble of the year with wins on Urim in race 5, Wipungdodangdang in race 8 and Towering in race 12. Park Tae Jong also managed three with Shine in race 1, Hero Interview in race 3 and Daehyo in race 10. Racing returns to Seoul at 11:10 tomorrow, with Busan and Jeju underway at 12:30.

Class 1 (Foreign bred) – Seoul Race Park – 2000M – Jan 17, 2009

1. Noubeau Riche (USA) [Beau Genius – Cozy Cafe (Future Storm)] – Cho Kyoung Ho – 4.2
2. Haengun Daewang (NZ) [City On A Hill – Anne of Avon (Honor Grades)] – Yoo Sang Wan – 12.3
3. Serendipper (AUS) [Danewin – Coppelius (Pleasant Colony)] – Park Tae Jong – 7.8
Distances: 0.5 lengths/0.5 lengths – 9 ran

FULL RESULTS FROM SEOUL