Richards off to Hong Kong flyer

Trainer Jamie Richards sent out a double on the opening-day of the Hong Kong season as he looks to build early momentum.

The Kiwi expat was all smiles after Groovy Feeling stormed home to narrowly win the second section of the Class 4 Ma On Shan Handicap (1200m) before Bulb General stamped his early claims as a four-year-old series prospect with an outstanding triumph in the Class 3 Lantau Peak Handicap (1200m) under Zac Purton.

“He was a bit closer in the run than I thought he was going to be but it was a nice watch,” Richards said of Bulb General, who made it back-to-back wins when he beat Akashvani by a length and a half.

“Obviously, all the owners here want to be a part of the four-year-old series and let’s hope he’s good enough to keep going and get a few more rating points in hand.

“I asked Zac to ride this horse a month ago and wanted to try and start strong and try and give the owners and everyone here a bit of faith that I hadn’t forgotten how to do it after a shocker last year. The team has been working hard during the off-season and hopefully we can get it going again.”

Bulb General was bought out of Cambridge Stud’s Book 1 draft at New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Yearling Sale for $175,000 by Richards and Andrew Williams Bloodstock and was a juvenile trial winner at Te Rapa before relocating to Hong Kong.

The talented gelding was an encouraging third on debut before a bout of colic, but has since bounced back to win his two outings impressively.

Bulb General is out of the Fastnet Rock mare Stylish Achiever.