He may only have finished fifth aboard Pierre Ng Pang-chi’s Duke Wai in Saturday night’s Group One Al Quoz Sprint (1,200m), but it was enough to leave Jerry Chau Chun-lok hungry for more.

Buzzing after his first ride overseas aboard a Hong Kong horse, the 22-year-old was pinching himself after competing against the likes of Ryan Moore and William Buick down the imposing Meydan straight.

“It’s a fantastic moment here, it’s like a dream. I never thought I could ride at the Dubai World Cup,” Chau said. “This is a great experience for me and for my future.”

Absent from Sha Tin on Sunday after beginning a two-meeting suspension that will also see him miss Wednesday night’s all-dirt meeting at the New Territories track, Chau is itching to build on his experience in the Middle East.

“I’ve learned a lot from this trip, and I’m very happy Duke Wai finished off like he did today – he’s a very tough and honest horse and I’m proud of him,” said Chau, who’s ridden 16 winners this season.

Emperor shifts focus to Cup defence

Russian Emperor’s overseas expedition came to a disappointing end in Saturday night’s Group One Dubai Sheema Classic (2,410m), but trainer Douglas Whyte has hinted there might be more travel on the horizon for the six-year-old.

Whyte suggested during the week that “there’s Royal Ascot, there’s Australia, Europe is on the radar” and he left things open after the reigning Champions & Chater Cup winner’s eighth at Meydan.

“The Champions & Chater Cup [on May 28] is his programme and after that, we’ll scratch our heads and see where we go,” Whyte said of his two-time Group One winner.

Russian Emperor hasn’t run in Hong Kong since January’s Stewards’ Cup, winning the H.H. The Amir Trophy (2,400m) in Qatar last month and running an eye-catching fifth in the Group One Jebel Hatta (1,800m) on Super Saturday on his way to Dubai World Cup night.

No Dubai Success, but a HK Hero

While Sight Success fell short in the Al Quoz Sprint – finishing one spot ahead of Duke Wai on Saturday night – owner Tam Wing-kun didn’t have to wait long for a consolation prize courtesy of Sight Hero on Sunday.

With Tam watching on from Dubai, Sight Hero took out the opening contest on the Sha Tin card – the Class Four CW Chu And Lee Woo Sing Alumni Handicap (1,200m) – and while a far cry from the glitz and glamour of Meydan, the 51-rated five-year-old enjoyed a change of scenery of his own.

“He’s missed the start twice at Happy Valley. I thought I’d bring him somewhere different for a change,” trainer David Hayes told the press moments after declining a call from Tam so he could complete his media commitments.

“His racing pattern does suit Sha Tin because of the long straight and he’s always a long way back. It’s nice when a plan comes off.”

Hayes praised jockey Hugh Bowman for his efforts aboard Sight Hero after he reared before the start, and the victory was the first of yet another double for the in-form Australian jockey.

Bowman’s second success came aboard the Michael Chang Chun-wai-trained Lost Child in the Class Four New Asia Alumni Handicap (1,400m), meaning he’s ridden doubles at four of the past five meetings.

He now has 39 wins for the campaign, with his weekend brace seeing him leapfrog Silvestre de Sousa into third in the jockeys’ championship.

Late start in store again

After pushing back the start of the 2022-23 campaign to give key participants an extra week to escape Hong Kong at a time when hotel quarantine was still in force, the Jockey Club will also delay the beginning of next season to ensure there’s time to undertake some much-needed renovations.

Chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges has confirmed the 2023-24 term will begin on September 10 – a week later than usual – because of works on the drainage of the small all-weather track inside the main dirt surface.

“We’ll do a renovation we wanted to do last year to the small all-weather track. This is the track which is by far the most used [for work] and it takes time, so we want to give ourselves a buffer,” Engelbrecht-Bresges said.

“You never know if there’s a delay. That’s why we postponed it for two years, due to Covid, because if you have to stop work, you’re really stuck.”

Things have got tight this season after the shortened term was compounded by a lost meeting in November because of Severe Tropical Storm Nalgae, with July’s replacement fixture meaning there are three cards in six days, but Engelbrecht-Bresges isn’t concerned.

“That’s the trade off – you take the risk. I think this year was probably a bit more difficult because of how the public holidays fell. It shouldn’t be as tough as this season,” he said.