HONG Kong star Golden Sixty overcame a slipped saddle and muddling pace to post a dramatic 12th successive victory with a narrow success in the Group 1 Stewards’ Cup over a mile at Sha Tin on Sunday.

Unbeaten since July 2019, Golden Sixty responded to Vincent Ho’s urgings to deny veteran Southern Legend by a head with Ka Ying Star three quarters of a length farther back in third.

Trainer Frankie Lui admitted concern as Golden Sixty found top gear, clocking 21.80s for the final 400m as Southern Legend looked to land a huge upset. “I was a bit worried. The pace was a bit slow. I feel okay now after the race.”

“They went pretty slow all the way, actually, so he was a little keen and he was pulling a little bit and then everyone sprint home,” Vincent Ho said. “I knew I would still get there, but it was quite close.”

“The saddle slipped back a little bit at the 300m but it was still okay but it was not as comfortable for me and Golden Sixty, of course,” Ho added.

As he moves closer to Silent Witness’ Hong Kong record of 17 consecutive wins, Lui said the Group 1 Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m) – the second leg of the Triple Crown – was likely to be the next competitive outing for the Australian-bred son of Medaglia d’Oro.

“We’ll just see how he recovers,” Lui said, brushing off suggestions the winning streak was pressure. “Not really, Golden Sixty brings a lot of joy,” he said.

Centenary Sprint Cup

Hot King Prawn put up an emphatic performance to claim his first Group 1 crown with victory in the Centenary Sprint Cup over six furlongs.

The grey delivered for Joao Moreira to provide trainer John Size with his fourth consecutive triumph in the feature.

“There was some frustration previously that he hasn’t won a Group 1 but in fairness he has run into some very smart horses in the last two or three years,” Size said of the Australian-bred Denman gelding.

“He was able to do his best today. You couldn’t have written the script any more perfectly and Joao did exactly what was expected and so did the horse and he had an easy win. He always gives his best.”

Winner of nine of his first 10 starts in Hong Kong, Hot King Prawn underwent colic surgery in 2019.

“Good horses make a jockey’s life much easier and no doubt this bloke made my job easier today,” Moreira said. “He’s just done everything so professionally and, of course, we had a smooth run through but I’ve got to highlight that John has got this horse to be so consistent – only champion trainers can do that.

“This horse is very straightforward, very sound and I could not ask for a better horse today. He won today and the best thing is that I believe there is more to come from him.”