Aidan O’Brien believes the Ballydoyle stalwart Luxembourg is in the right race as he bids to bring his career to a winning finale at Hong Kong’s International Carnival on Sunday morning.
A year ago, Luxembourg came within a short head of upsetting local favourite Romantic Warrior in the Hong Kong Cup over 10 furlongs.
This time he’s back attempting to give O’Brien a fourth success in the mile-and-a-half Vase, one of four Group One contests worth almost €15 million between them at the Sha Tin track.
The son of Camelot is set to start a new stallion career at Coolmore in 2025 after a notable career during which he has won Group One contests at two, three, four and five.
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“We felt last year we ran him in the wrong race,” said O’Brien told Hong Kong. “He just got beat and it looked like a mile-and-a-half would have suited him better. Obviously, he was very unlucky to meet a special horse [Romantic Warrior].”
Luxembourg, ridden again by Ryan Moore, will be joined in the Vase by stable companion Continuous, the mount of Wayne Lordan. The race is off at 6.10am Irish time.
The Vase is traditionally the best shot at success for European raiders, although disputing favouritism for the contest this time is Japan’s three-year-old filly Stellenbosch and Australia’s Without A Fight, winner of last year’s Melbourne Cup and Caulfield Cup.
Dubai Honour leads British hopes while Iresine, an unlucky fourth in Ascot’s Champion Stakes on his last start, is joined by another French runner, Marquisat.
The global element to the final big international fixture of 2024 was underlined by O’Brien who said: “This is a special meeting. I don’t think this time of the year anyone would want to be anywhere [else]. I think it’s exciting for racing all over the world we can bring these horses together and we can get a handle on where the best horses are and who’s the best.”
Luxembourg’s narrow defeat last year was the third time O’Brien has hit the frame in the Cup, a race won by Jim Bolger’s Alexander Goldrun 20 years ago.
In recent years it has become a benefit for horses trained in Hong Kong and Japan and local superstar Romantic Warrior is odds on to pull off an unprecedented hat-trick in the race due off at 8.40am Irish time.
Japan’s Liberty Island is rated his biggest threat, although O’Brien pitches in the fillies Content (Moore) and Wingspan (Lordan.)
Content landed the Yorkshire Oaks in August while her stablemate has Group One form behind Kalpana on British Champions Day.
“Content can be keen, and we think the pace of the race will suit her. She ran in America last time [sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf] and the pace wasn’t really fast enough for her. We thought going back will suit and get her relaxed,” said O’Brien.
Galway rider Rossa Ryan will try to bring a momentous 2024 to a close with Sprint success on his shock Breeders’ Cup winner Starlust.
Ryan’s breakthrough season has been highlighted by Arc glory on Bluestocking but Starlust faces a daunting task against another Hong Kong superstar in Ka Ying Rising, a heavy odds-on favourite for a race off at 6.50am.
Sha Tin’s other top-flight contest is the Mile (8am) where European hopes appear to rest mostly with the French Group One winner Lazzat. He won the Prix Maurice de Gheest in August and was an unlucky runner-up in the hugely valuable Golden Eagle contest in Australia last month.
