CC Wong

Chan Famous & Oasis Blue Win Classic Trials as CC Wong Claims Another Listed Victory

CC Wong rode his second Listed winner in a week as Chan Famous came from a long way back to stake his claim for a spot in the starting gate when the Triple Crown kicks off in April by winning the Sports Seoul Trophy (1400M KOR-L) on Sunday afternoon. At Busan, Oasis Blue did the same, with a comfortable score in the Gyeongnam Shinmun Trophy (1400M KOR-L), the pair of races the respective main Classic trials of the two tracks.

Jockey CC Wong and Trainer Kenny Seo share…a moment (Pic: KRA)

Having debuted nondescriptly last November, Chan Famous won his next two before kicking off his three-year-old campaign with a 4th place at class 4 over this distance. That adequate but by no means amazing record led him to be sent off at 38.1 on the local tote as One Punch Dragon, entering the race on a three-race winning streak, jumped as the favourite.

Another outsider, Silver Rain, set the pace along with the fancied Long Run Bulpae, who entered as the only horse to have raced at class 3 level. Silver Rain would fade in the straight leaving Long Run Bulpae and Lee Dong-ha alone out in front and seemingly home and hosed.

Chan Famous downs Long Run Bulpae (Pic: KRA)

That would be to reckon with Chan Famous as having sat towards the rear of midfield, CC launched his mount and he relentlessly eroded a big deficit in the final furlong, reeling in and passing a tiring Long Run Bulpae to win by just under a length. Best Race was 3rd and Captain P.K., Seoul’s best juvenile of 2024, was 4th.

Chan Famous is by Hansen and out of Intouchable (by Elusive Quality). Trained by Seo Bum-seok, he was a 94 Million Won purchase as a two-year-old by his owner, Hong Kong based Shum Ho Chun.

It was a first big race win in Korea for the owner while for trainer Seo, generally known as “Kenny”, it was another big price success with a young horse – stablemate Aqua Line, won last November’s G2 Breeders’ Cup Rookie at Busan at 80/1, although has been on the sidelines since. For CC Wong, it was a second Korean Listed win in as many weeks with the jockey having taken out the Segye Ilbo Trophy on Crown Hamseong last Sunday.

At Busan, Oasis Blue crossed the line in front for the second time in Listed company, having previously done so in last Octobers Gimhae Mayor’s Trophy. That day he was deemed to have been at fault for an incident early in the race that resulted in a jockey being unseated and under the local rules of racing, he got thrown out.

Since then, he had registered a 3rd place and a win at class 4 level over the Korean Derby distance, but Oasis Blue was dropped back to 1400M to scratch that Listed itch on Sunday. Close all the way under jockey Jin Kyum, taking the lead turning into the straight and once he got in front set about his task well, opening up a big lead and taking the line a full three-lengths to the good over Yongbi Paewang, with My Dream Day in 3rd.

Oasis Blue is by Uncaptured and is out of Saena (by Peace Rules). He is trained by Baik Kwang-yeol and owned by Lee Jong-hun, who has owned the likes of Success Story, Beolmaui Kkum and Beolmaui Star.

The first leg of the 2025 Triple Crown is the KRA Cup Mile (1600M KOR-G2) at Busan on Sunday April 6.

CROWN HAMSEONG FRONTS UP FOR CC WONG IN SEGYE ILBO TROPHY

Crown Hamseong wired the field to walk off with the Segye Ilbo Trophy (1200M KOR-Listed) at Seoul Racecourse on Sunday afternoon. The four-year-old filly scored a first Stakes win for herself and in the process a maiden Korean Principal race win for jockey CC Wong.

Crown Hamseong and CC Wong have plenty in hand on Daemnagui Gil on the line (Pic: KRA)

It had been a day for pacesetters with all prior winners on the card having led practically from gate to wire and there was accordingly a cavalry charge to get the coveted leading position after the short run heading into the turn from the six-furlong start. Vincero Cavallo, Naol Sniper, Something Lost, Yeonggwangui World and Saenae Town all tried, but coming out of gate two, CC and Crown Hamseong were too quick for them all.

Opening up a lead of three-lengths into the home straight, Crown Hamseong made the closing stages a procession as the other front-runners fell away. Daemangui Gil and Speed Young would eventually emerge from the rear to get closest, albeit a full two-lengths back on the line. Crown Hamseong returned as the 9.9 fifth favourite in the local win pool.

It was perhaps a race too far for Vincero Cavallo, who showed close to the pace early, but ran out of petrol equally quickly and finished well down the field. The pre-race favourite had run every month since his 6th place in the Korea Sprint and it showed.

As for Speed Young, giving the prevailing track conditions were evidently favouring front-runners, it was always going to be a hard ask given his racing style and widest gate. Under a sensible Kim Hye-sun ride, he perhaps did well to run 3rd.

Veteran Daemangui Gil ran a super race to run 2nd, Kim Tae-hui threading her way through the field late to get closest to the winner. It was a pick-up ride for Kim after scheduled jockey Jung Do-yun suffered a broken shoulder in a fall at Busan on Friday. Jung is expected to be out for several months.

Crown Hamseong [Freedom Child – Choegoya Choego (by Menifee)] is a four-year-old filly who was purchased by her owner Hwang Eui-young for 30 Million Won as a yearling in 2022. Trained by Lee Gwan-ho, she came into the race boasting seven wins from ten starts, up to class 1 level and a mile. She skipped all three legs of the Triple Tiara series last year. She could be very interesting in this year’s Queens’ Tour.

For jockey CC “Jimmy” Wong, it was a 43rd win in Korea and his first in a Listed or Graded Stakes. After an initial very successful stint in the country early in 2024, he returned to Singapore to see out the final days of racing in the Lion City but returned in late autumn and is gradually picking up from where he left off.

CC Wong is part of a very strong visiting jockey group at Seoul that also includes Ruan Maia, Kozzi Asano and Harry Kasim, as well as long-time Korea based multiple Group winner Johan Victoire and former Champion Apprentice in Turkey, Furkan Yuksel.

Next weekend, attention turns to the three-year-old crop with Triple Crown Classic trials at both Seoul and Busan.