Alabama Express has done a great job this season with his first crop of two year-olds and broke new ground on Saturday at Sha Tin when his first runner in the region returned a winner with Karate Express scoring on debut.
Trained by Francis Lui and ridden by Lyle Hewitson, Karate Express surged between runners to win a very competitive 14 horse griffin race over 1000m by a length.
“I think he’s got potential. He’s only two years old and the gap was very narrow. When it opened, he fought. It’s a good sign,” Lui said.
“I think the main thing is in the off-season, hopefully he can grow up and he’ll have a good future.”
A $100,000 Inglis Ready 2 Race purchase for Griffiths de Kock Racing / Peter Ford Thoroughbreds from the Blake Ryan Racing draft, he we sourced originally from Inglis Classic for $45,000 from the Burke Bloodstock draft.
Karate Express is the third winner from Tiffany’s, a winning half-sister by High Chaparral (IRE) to Group II winner Neo and also Hong Kong Derby winner Ping Hai Star.
Karate Express is the tenth winner from 16 starters for Alabama Express, who stands at Yulong this spring at the increased fee of $55,000.
