Connections of Sacred Kingdom have several options with their champion sprinter in the wake of his brilliant victory in the G1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize at Sha Tin on Sunday.
The Australian bred son of Encosta de Lago has now won the first two legs of the Hong Kong Speed Series and a HK$2 million bonus awaits if he completes a clean sweep in the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup on March 14. He won the opening leg in the Centenary Sprint Cup last month.
Trainer Ricky Yiu, who had already ruled out a trip to Dubai, now has to decide whether to stay at home or travel to Japan for the Takamatsunomiya Kinen at Chukyo on March 28.
“It’s getting close so we have to make a decision soon,” Yui said. “We will definitely give another thought to going to Japan but there’s also a fair chance of going for the bonus here.”
Sacred Kingdom (7g Encosta de Lago – Courtroom Sweetie by Zeditave) has now won 15 of his 23 starts and his earnings now top HK$37 million.
Jockey Brett Prebble, who returned to Hong Kong after riding at Caulfield on Saturday, said the Chairman’s Sprint Prize panned out exactly as he had expected. “I had him pretty much where I wanted. He’s probably at his peak now. He’s a very happy horse and is really comfortable in his action.”
Sacred Kingdom has been ranked atop of the World Rankings in the sprint category since 2007. He is by Coolmore champion Encosta de Lago and was bred at the Calvert family’s Korning Stud in Victoria.
His dam Courtroom Sweetie is a Sydney winning sister to G2 winner Love Of Mary. She has a 3yo named Sweeten The Deal (Fastnet Rock) and followed up with two fillies by Elvstroem. She missed to Encosta de Lago in 2008 and was covered by him again last year.
Kornong Stud sold Sacred Kingdom for $200,000 at the 2005 Inglis Melbourne Premier yearling sale. The Streatham based nursery has a Fastnet Rock – Dushanbe colt (Lot 115) entered for the Oaklands Junction auction next week. The colt’s second dam Tristanagh (Sir Tristram) was a G1 winner of the VRC Oaks and VATC One Thousand Guineas.