Exultant Wins Final Group 1 of Hong Kong Season

Exultant and jockey Zac Purton read every line of their script perfectly in the May 24 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup (G1) at Sha Tin Racecourse, and the final group 1 scene in a dramatic year of Hong Kong racing could make the winner Horse of the Year.

Had there been fans in the stands—the COVID-19 protocols prevented it—every one of them could have predicted the plot. Time Warp, under new rider Chad Schofield, took the front in the 2,400-meter (about 1 1/2-mile) chase and played "catch me if you can."

Purton had been there, done that and was determined not to let Time Warp steal the race. He tracked the leader around the first turn, through a relaxed run down the backstretch, and into the final bend.

Time Warp had enough as the two straightened away heading for home, finally fading to finish last of seven. Exultant opened a daylight lead and held off the late runs of Chefano and Furore, winning by one length.

"It's never easy in small fields when you're on the favorite," Purton said. "Everyone goes out there to make your life difficult, and they tried to do that again today. But, fortunately, I was on a horse that was able to absorb some pressure and still be able to fight out a finish."

Although it appeared Exultant was running on fumes heading for the line, Purton said it might not have been quite so.

"I thought, once again, I was out on my feet at the 200 (meters), but today it was like he was waiting for them a little more. It's like he's become more cunning, and I could feel, when they were coming, he started to surge underneath."

Exultant ran his season record to four wins from seven starts. It was his second consecutive top-level score, following the FWD QE II Cup (G1) in his last outing. In that, the 6-year-old Teofilo gelding also shadowed pacesetting Time Warp before accelerating through the stretch to hang on for the win.

The Champions & Chater Cup normally would have significant international involvement as Hong Kong's horse population is not rich in stayer types. Exultant was third in the Longines Hong Kong Vase (G1) at the same trip in December, trailing two Japanese runners. Travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic prevented any outside challenges in the Champions & Chater.

Trainer Tony Cruz won the race for the seventh time, adding to the three renewals he won as a jockey, and said he reckons Exultant the best of the lot at the distance.

"He's the best stayer of them all," Cruz said. "He has no speed, but he has a great attitude."

The victory keeps hopes alive that Exultant can be Horse of the Year in Hong Kong. The only logical rival is Golden Sixty, who swept the 4-year-old classic series, culminating in the BMW Hong Kong Derby.

Exultant "does deserve it," Purton said of the ultimate honor. "Everyone wants to talk about Golden Sixty, but he only did it in the 4-year-old series. He didn't come out and do it against the older horses, and I think it's important that is taken into consideration. That might be the telling factor."

As the season begins to wind down, the race for Horse of the Year shares top billing with the competition between Purton and Joao Moreira for the jockey premiership—a big deal in Hong Kong. Demonstrating the dominance of those top two, each won four races on the 11-race May 24 card and they remain tied for the season with 123 wins each.