It has been a long time coming but finally the hard work paid off for Jarred Samuel at Seoul Racecourse this afternoon as he rode his first Korean winner. It was his 102nd ride.
The 27-year-old South African has certainly been keeping busy since arriving in Seoul in April getting on plenty of horses. However, none of them have ever looked to be potential winners.
The same could have been said about Raon Rusa (Pico Central). The filly won three of her first four starts and was second in another but came into race 7 this afternoon a 15/1 chance following a disappointing performance last month.
Samuel would not be denied this time though. Always handy, he brought Raon Rusa through in the home straight to overtake tiring leader Super Plucky and held off the Djordje Perovic ridden Ssen Sky by a length on the line for a foreign jockey one-two.
Hopefully it’s the first of many for the ever-positive jockey.
There is a new trainer from overseas at Busan Racecourse. Thomas Gillespie was granted a license effective from the beginning of June and is gradually building his stable up.
The stables at Busan. Home to new overseas trainer
A native of Ireland, Gillespie has been training in his own right since 2010 in Malaysia after a spell as an assistant in Singapore. He arrives with a solid reputation. His father Declan, who was his assistant in Malaysia, will be familiar to Irish and British racing fans as he was a successful jockey.
Gillespie has received early support from owner Lee Won Tae, who has already sent three to his barn while Pegasus Stables have also supplied one.
Thomas Gillespie has been allocated stable number 8 and joins Peter Wolsley and Bart Rice, both also at Busan, as the only foreign trainers in Korean racing. The 33-year-old Gillespie will have the distinction of being the youngest trainer in Korea.
In other licensing news, several young jockeys have been newly apprenticed at both Seoul and Busan. There are five at Seoul and three at Busan and interestingly, the new jockeys for Busan are younger than than they are in the capital and closer in age to what one would expect of a newly apprenticed rider elsewhere in the world.
The quality of young apprentices coming through has been getting higher year on year so it will be interesting to see how they go.
Here is a list of the new riders along with ages and the trainer they have been apprenticed to:
Seoul Kim Do Jung – 23 (Woo Chang Ku) Cho Jae Ro – 21 (Bae Hou Jun) Jung Hyun – 28 (Park Dae Heung) Lee Hyun Jong – 21 (Park Jae Woo) Ha Jung Hoon – 24 (Shin Sam Young
Busan Park Jae Lee – 19 (Mun Je Bok) Lee Yong Ho – 18 (Kang Byeong Eun) Jin Gyeom – 20 (Youn Joo Hyuk)
New White Socks stunned Daegunhwang and in doing so, broke the Seoul Racecourse track record for 1700M (approximately eight and a half furlongs).
Class 2 Handicap – Seoul Racecourse – 1700M – June 13, 2015
1. New White Socks (KOR) [Secret Weapon – Wonder Queen (Canadian Silver)] – Moon Se Young – 4.8, 1.2 2. Daegunhwang (KOR) [Menifee – Lusi Pond (Elusive Quality)] – Seo Seung Un – 1.1 3. Ilgi Dangcheon (KOR) [Peace Rules – Mucha Prisa (Wild Again)] – Kim Hye Sun – 1.7 Distances: 1.75 lengths / 6 lengths – 8 ran
The record had stood since July 2009 when set by Green Jewel but with the track racing fast at the moment it was no real surprise to see it go today.
New White Socks' new record
However, most money would have been on Daegunhwang and not New White Socks to be the one to do it. They finished 4th and 12th respectively in the Korean Derby last month and while both also held wins over this distance, it was Daegunhwang who was sent off as the odds-on favourite.
Ilgi Dangcheon set a very brisk early pace and the two favourites let him get on with it until he came back to them turning for home. Under Moon Se Young, New White Socks hit the front first and never let go as Daegunhwang chased in vain.
New White Socks crossed the line a length and a half in front and shaved one tenth of a second off the record which now stands at 1.48.3. He now has 6 wins from 9 career starts.
We’re just over a week away from the Korean Oaks and thirteen are currently set to line up for the fillies’ Classic at Busan Racecourse on Sunday June 21.
Eurofighter was the last filly from Seoul to win the Korean Oaks
For the first time since 2012, there isn’t a Derby winner among them. Speedy First and Queen’s Blade completed the Derby/Oaks double in 2013 and 2014 respectively but this year, only two fillies took their chance in the Derby and of those only Smart Time, who was 7th, is also entered here.
Meni Money heads a five-strong challenge from Seoul. She won an early Oaks trial in the capital in March and is on a five-race unbeaten streak. The last filly from Seoul to win the Oaks was Eurofighter in 2010.
We will have a full preview of the race next week but in the meantime, here are the horses left in (Name [Pedigree] (Starts/1st/2nd/3rd) Trainer (Home track):
The Korean Oaks (KOR G2) – Busan Racecourse – 1800M – June 21, 2015
Meni Money [Menifee – Pocketful Of Money (Running Stag)] (9/5/4/0) Kim Dong Kyun (Seoul) Jibong Sarang [Officer – Meryl’s Spirit (Storm Boot)] (6/2/3/1) Kim Jae Seob (Busan) Lucky Music [Creek Cat – Dangdae Jeil (Lucky Ruler)] (11/4/1/3) Seo Heung Soo (Seoul) Queen Two Hearts [Menifee – Ghostly Gal (Silver Ghost)] (5/4/0/1) Yoo Byoung Bok (Busan) Queen Creek Cat [Creek Cat – Hwamongnan (Umatilla)] (8/3/3/1) Kim Hyo Seob (Seoul) Smart Time [Ft. Stockton – Charon (Jade Robbery)] (9/3/2/0) Kim Dong Kyun (Seoul) Dangdae Cheonha [Forest Camp – Dangdaeteukgeup (Tayasu Meadow)] (9/2/5/0) Peter Wolsley (Busan) Dia Girl [Didyme – Gild Regal (Gilded Time)] (9/3/2/1) Song Moon Gil (Seoul) Jangpung Parang [Creek Cat – Ascend The Throne (Silver Charm)] (8/3/2/2) Kim Young Kwan (Busan) Hot Commend [Commendable – Hot Red (Thunder Gulch)] (6/1/2/0) Yoo Byoung Bok (Busan) Grace [Vicar – Attendance (A.P. Indy)] – Baik Kwang Youl (Busan) Pandora [Menifee – Format II (Furiously)] (9/1/0/3) Kim Jae Seob (Busan) Purple Ocean [Volponi – Espirito (Prince Of Birds)] (4/1/0/0) An Woo Sung (Busan)
Esmeraldina’s Ttukseom Cup win was the top story of the weekend, but there was plenty of other action going on too.
Down at Busan, the feature race of the weekend was somewhat overshadowed by events at Seoul 30 minutes previously but it ended in another Japanese success as Masa Tanaka rode 8/1 shot Ildeung Hanghaesa to victory.
4-year-old Ildeung Hanghaesa (Ecton Park), who beat second-favourite Dynamic Dash by 4-lengths, was winning for the 5th time in total and the first time at class 1. As for Tanaka, the Japanese rider has started a countdown to his 100th Korean winner and is now on 72.
In addition to the Ttukseom Cup, there was class 1 action at Seoul too and it was a return to the winner’s circle for the first time in over a year for one of the stalwarts of the track, Singgeureounachim. The 7-year-old was sent off at odds of 35/1 but under apprentice Kim Dong Soo (which got him a 2kg weight allowance) he ran on for victory by just under a length from joint-favourite Best Run. It was a 10th career win for Singgeureounachim (Exploit) on his 50th career start.
Earlier on Sunday at Seoul, jockey Djordje Perovic, who has impressed a number of observers in his short time here so far, got his first Korean winner.
On a weekend which saw attendance at both KBO baseball and K-League football matches drop by 40% due to public fears over the MERS virus (or as Yonhap News ever so slightly melodramatically put it, South Korea is currently “an ailing nation in the grip of a deadly virus”), it was inevitable that racing was going to suffer too.
As it was, while the infield family park was nearly deserted, betting turnover was also down on Sunday to an average KRW 4.1 Billion per race from KRW 4.4 Billion per race last week. It was the lowest of the year so far. Online betting is illegal in Korea and the legal telephone betting service that was previously offered was forcibly shut down by the government a few years ago.
You have to physically go to the track or an OTB if you want a legal punt. The MERS panic is a demonstration of one of the deficiencies of that policy and no doubt the illegal bookies were cheering it all the way to the bank.
Djordje Perovic has ridden his first winner in South Korea. The 33-year-old partnered Gold Mountain to a 5-length victory in race 6 on the Ttukseom Cup undercard at Seoul Racecourse today.
It was Perovic’s first winner in Seoul and came on his 35th ride in the Korean capital. Crucially, it was one of the first he’d had that had been given much of a chance pre-race.
Perovic has two more rides later in the day and the chance of at least one more winner. His win added to the three second places and a third he’d already managed.
The other two foreign jockeys at the track, Jarred Samuel and Rakesh Bhaugeerothee are still working for their first wins. Hopefully they are not too far away.
There are thirteen left in this coming Sunday’s Ttukseom Cup at Seoul Racecourse, the track’s first International Open race. They are headed by Japan-based Esmeraldina, who arrived in Korea last week.
Esmeraldina
Esmeraldina’s connections have shrewdly opted to give the ride to Busan-based Japanese jockey Joe Fujii, a man who has won three big Stakes races in the Korean capital before; the Grand Prix Stakes, the Korean Derby and the Jeju Governor’s Cup. The four-year-old Esmeraldina has reportedly settled into Seoul Racecourse very well.
The other Japan-based filly initially entered to run, Robe De Soie, was unable to make the trip after suffering a bleeding attack.
Four are set to travel up from Busan with Heba and New York Blue among them with the rest coming from the home track.
We will have a full preview after final declarations later in the week but in the meantime, here is a run-down of those left in with pedigree (Starts/1st/2nd/3rd) and home track:
Ttukseom Cup (KOR G3) – Seoul Racecourse – 1400M (Fillies & Mares 5yo and down) – June 7, 2015
Cheonnyeon Dongan (KOR) [Ecton Park – Honeycakes (Hennessy)] (22/10/5/3) Seoul Ua Deungseon (KOR) [Menifee – Singgeureoun (Mr. Adorable)] (13/6/0/1) Seoul Geumbit Hwanhui (KOR) [Peace Rules – Sincheongchun (Silent Warrior)] (16/5/3/2) Seoul Joy Lucky (KOR) [Vicar – Proper Gun (Prosper Fager)] (16/10/1/0) Seoul Esmeraldina (USA) [Harlan’s Holiday – Tasha’s Star (Spanish Steps)] Japan My Day (KOR) [Touch Gold – Smart Advice (Smart Strike)] (30/11/7/4) Seoul Bichui Jeongsang (USA) [Wildcat Heir – Persimmon Honey (Colonial Affair)] (12/5/4/0) Seoul Heba (USA) [Peace Rules – Sue’s Temper (Temperence Hill)] (30/7/5/1) Busan Halla Chukje (USA) [Gottcha Gold – C D Player (Montbrook)] (19/3/4/1) Seoul Golden Lass (KOR) [Ecton Park – Golden Eagle (Big Sur)] (12/4/2/3) Busan Fly Top Queen (USA) [Henny Hughes – Cape Discovery (Cape Town)] (15/7/1/1) Seoul New York Blue (USA) [Candy Ride – Aim For The Moon (Deputy Minister)] (17/5/7/1) Busan Ms. Margaux (USA) [Midnight Lute – Sixtyone Margaux (Cozzene)] (17/1/7/7) Busan
Two jockeys from Mauritius have arrived in Korea and are set to begin riding as soon as this coming weekend. Niven Marday will be based at Busan while Rakesh Baugheerothee will be in Seoul.
Niven Marday and Rakesh Bhaugeerothee (Pics: lemauricien.com)
Niven Marday gets arguably the easier assignment at Busan where foreign jockeys have tended to enjoy more success. The 25-year-old trained at the South African Jockey Academy and in 2014 rode six winners at Champ De Mars in Mauritius, finishing 19th in the Jockey Championship. He lies in 11th place this year with 3 wins so far.
A couple of months ago, there were no foreign riders at Seoul. South African Jarred Samuel then joined in April and was quickly followed by Italian licensed Serbian jockey Djordje Perovic at the start of this month. Bringing the number to three is Rakesh Bhaugeerothee.
Like Marday, the 38-year-old Baugheerothee also rode six winners in Mauritius last season and has added another one this term.
At Busan, Marday joins the Japanese quartet of Joe Fujii, Nozi Tomzawa, Masa Tanaka and Nobuyuki Oyama.
Yeongcheon Ace was the winner of the 2015 Korean Derby at Seoul Racecourse on Sunday. The second-favourite secured victory by two lengths to ensure that no horse will sweep the Triple Crown this year with KRA Cup Mile victor Rafale ending in 3rd.
Choi Si Dae and Yeongcheon Ace return to the unsaddling area after winning the Derby (Pic: Slickpix)
Yeongcheon Ace is the third consecutive Korean Derby winner to have been sired by Menifee following the fillies Speedy First in 2013 and Queen’s Blade in 2014. He is also the 6th horse from Busan to win the Derby from the 8 editions that have taken place since horses from that track became eligible.
Here’s how they went:
1. Yeongcheon Ace (Choi Si Dae) – Away steadily and sat towards the back until they entered the home straight. He closed strongly and took the lead inside the final furlong to win by two lengths, going away. 4.8 to win, 1,7 to show.
2. Triple Nine (Oh Kyoung Hoan) – Ostensibly Kim Young Kwan’s second string, after receiving a lot of backing in the morning’s racing media, he was quite heavily backed. He sat in midfield but improved around the home-turn to second. He was passed by the winner and was labouring a little towards the line. 6.6, 2.5 (2 lengths behind the horse in front)
3. Rafale (You Hyun Myung) – The KRA Cup Mile winner, who’s lost 13kg since that race, sat comfortably in the middle of the pack and closed down the outside in the home straight. Finished strongly but was three-quarters of a length behind Triple Nine. 5.0, 1.7 (0.75 lengths)
4. Daegunhwang (Seo Seung Un) – When he opened up a lead of two lengths at the top of the stretch, the race was his to lose. Lose it he did but it was still a solid run from Seoul’s best finisher who was close to the front throughout and took things up as they began to turn for home. Weakened in the last half furlong. 9.1, 2.1 (0.75 lengths)
5. Doraon Hyeonpyo (Kim Dong Young) – The pre-race favourite raced in 4th or 5th the whole way around. Although he he quickened sufficiently to pass the early leaders as they tired, he too was passed in the home straight. 2.4, 1.2 (0.5 lengths)
6. Seonbong (Lee Joon Chel) – A good run although he just missed out on the prize money. He went towards the back early and closed well although couldn’t make inroads into the big guns in the final furlong. 113.9, 9.9 (1.5 lengths)
7. Smart Time (Ham Wan Sik) – The lowest rated pre-race was the first of the two fillies to finish and it was creditable enough. Went back early but passed four in the home straight. Was finishing the 3rd quickest in the race, she may be Oaks bound. 148.8, 28.5 (1 length)
8. Yuseong Fighting (Lee Hee Cheon) – We said in the preview that this one would go forward as there was no way he would be able to win from the back. Well they did totally the opposite, going right to the back and then closing impressively. Of course, there was far too much to do but only the winner finished quicker. The last of those who were in touch with the winner and can be said to have had a good race. 161.2, 15.6 (1.5 lengths)
9. Mac And Cheese (Joe Fujii) – After his performance in the KRA Cup Mile, expectations were low and he duly lived down to them. He went towards the back early and didn’t quicken when asked. 58.0, 13.7 (5 lengths)
10. Yeongung Bolt (Song Keong Yun) – The other filly, she went towards the back of midfield early and didn’t find anything in the home straight, finishing slowly. After the race she was found to have bled and will be suspended for one month. 165.4, 25.0 (5 lengths)
11. Yeonggwanguitaepung (Masa Tanaka) – He’d lost 14kg since his KRA CUp Mile 4th and the race went exactly the opposite to how it was expected. Instead of starting slowly and finishing strongly, he went towards the front early and finished weakly. Didn’t look 100% right. 19.7, 4.2 (Nose)
12. New White Socks (Moon Se Young) – A big disappointment, this one showed close to the front much of the way around but was passed on the home turn and was slow in the straight. 16.3, 3.9 (0.5 lengths)
13. Sanggam Mama (Park Eul Woon) – As expected, he went out quickly and took the early lead. As expected, he couldn’t keep it up and was done by the time they got to the home straight. 75.7, 15.8 (2.5 lengths)
The Korean Oaks will be run at Busan on June 21 while the final leg of the Triple Crown is the Minister’s Cup, back at Seoul on July 19.
The Korean racing community was one of several around the world to be saddened to learn of the death of jockey Fausto Durso in Brazil on Saturday.
Fausto Durso: 1974-2015
Durso first came to Korea to ride in the Seoul International Jockey Challenge in August 2013, winning the feature race of the event, the YTN Cup, on Choichoro. He immediately applied for a short-term license, which was approved. He returned to Korea in October that year and rode five more winners during a three-month stay over the winter of 2013-2014.
Having turned professional aged 18 and ridden 700 winners in his native Brazil, Fausto Durso moved to Asia and competed in the 2013 Jockey Challenge as a representative of the Macau Jockey Club.
It was in that jurisdiction where he had his biggest successes, riding 600 winners and winning many of the biggest races as well as twice being crowned champion jockey. Durso also had stints in Dubai, Malaysia and most recently, in Mauritius.
Fausto Durso winning the YTN Cup at Seoul Racecourse in 2013 (Pic: Ross Holburt)
Like many foreign riders who come to Seoul, Durso didn’t get as many opportunities as he would have liked but regularly made the most of what he had to work with, achieving a very high place percentage over his 165 rides.
Fausto Durso is remembered by those who knew him here as being friendly, hard-working and a very talented jockey.
According to local media reports, Durso died following an altercation outside his parents’ house in Senador Firmino. He was 40 years old. Thoughts are with his family and friends.
Horse Racing in Korea 