Hong Kong: Pakistan Star clinched the Queen Elizabeth II Cup for jockeyWilliam Buick in Hong Kong Sunday, the highlight of three Group One springraces with a total purse of HK$58 million ($7.4 million).
Known for being unpredictable, the five-year-old stormed to victory by alarge margin in the final strides and finished the 2,000-metre course injust over two minutes.
“He´s quite a famous horse for his antics so I was aware of him and I wasaware of what he can do,” Buick said after the race, adding Pakistan Star”felt beautiful today”.
“When I found out that I was riding him, I took on board all of theinformation I knew about the horse and also thought it was quite importantto ride him with a fresh mind and just be very positive about the horse,”the winning jockey said.
The prize money for the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup had been boosted up fromlast year´s HK$20 million to HK$24 million.
Italian jockey Alberto Sanna finished second on Gold Mount, whileAustralian Hong Kong-based jockey Brett Prebble rode Eagle Way to finishthird.
Australian jockey Zac Purton was another star of the day, ridingfour-year-old gelding Ivictory to triumph in the 1,200-metre Chairman´sSprint race.
“I was fortunate enough to get on him and at the right time,” he said ofIvictory.
Purton claimed his first Hong Kong Cup last year in the city´s LonginesInternational Races, one of the world´s richest race meetings.
Already on a winning streak, Purton snapped up the 1,600-metre ChampionsMile with Beauty Generation, surging from a relatively slow start to sealits victory.
“He´s just so honest, he goes out and runs the same race every time. Whenhe gets the circumstances to suit him, you get to see how good he is,”Purton said of the horse. – APP/AFP