Alan Aitken
Rating the HK Derby - it isn't just about the maths
The highest-rated Hong Kong Derby winner since the turn of the century was Lucky Owners (pictured), with a 129 figure from the...
top of page
Search
Alan Aitken
Dec 10, 20196 min read
Too easy, too overrated? Longines HKIR is done and dusted for another year
After the invitation to Almond Eye had been made, accepted and her presence expected, the absence of arguably the world's current best...
89 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Nov 27, 20194 min read
Quarantine issues over, let's work on competition
As welcome as Australian horses, like In Her Time (right), are for the Hong Kong International Races next month, it is arguably not a big...
29 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Nov 2, 20195 min read
The winter looks bright - it's the season of Size
There are not many racing jurisdictions in the world where the trainer running 14th after two months of a 10-month season remains a firm...
33 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Oct 23, 20195 min read
Gimme some room! says Beauty Generation
"Oh, give me land, lots of land under starry skies above, Don't fence me in, Let me ride through the wide open country that I love, Don't...
44 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Oct 4, 20194 min read
Don't be a (knee) jerk on Aethero defeat
It is never hard to be wise after the event in racing but, in terms of Hong Kong's racing scene, the defeat of boom youngster Aethero on...
47 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Sep 24, 20194 min read
It's a season of challenge as time weighs on John Moore's star gallopers
There's no doubt who the king is right now. In fact, Beauty Generation holds a higher place in the Hong Kong landscape than the usual...
37 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Sep 17, 20194 min read
Don't be in a Rush when the new imports step out
It's that time again, when the Private Purchase (PP) horses start to step out and confuse the life out of their old fans back home. By...
100 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Aug 28, 20196 min read
Will the jockey show be back out front in 2019-20?
Last season, it was the thrilling trainers' premiership that kept us guessing until the final day but the jockeys might have their turn...
71 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Aug 26, 20195 min read
How John Size learned to love Happy Valley again & why he is favourite to make it 5 titles straight
When Tornado Twist won the last Happy Valley race of last season to send John Size two clear again in the championship after John Moore...
53 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Aug 22, 20195 min read
What will Betfair mean for Hong Kong racing?
The day that Betfair's first crack at Hong Kong closed its portal seems lost in time but the best guess would be in 2003, after the...
479 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Jun 11, 20194 min read
Purton's first 1,000 came up the hard way
It has only happened twice, so the patterns are unclear and it will always be a small sample, but there's no doubt Zac Purton got his...
73 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
May 6, 20194 min read
Is the 2019 Kentucky Derby a watershed on the road to change?
The first we knew of Donald Trump's interest in horseracing was a bust of Martin Luther King crashing into the wall of the Oval Office...
41 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Apr 30, 20198 min read
Why would Chris Waller be interested in Hong Kong anyway? You be the judge
The December sun was bright but unthreatening and the humity that so often characterises Hong Kong's climate had taken it's winter break....
539 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Mar 20, 20195 min read
How will the 2019 Derby stack up?
The 2019 BMW HK Derby field went into the race with something to prove and emerged from it the same way. Of course, there was a winner...
42 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Jan 22, 20197 min read
The Day of the Demon is over - or has just begun again
As July, 2014 opened, I had been working in Hong Kong as a racing journalist for 13 years and I had only seen one man crowned champion...
74 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Jan 16, 20193 min read
Keep cheering home those seconds
Punters get frustrated by them, horses are often the subject of denigration when they string together minor placings and trainers attract...
53 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Jan 8, 20195 min read
Don't be fooled by Star's "flukey" win
Ka Ying Star's opening bid for the four-year-old series on Sunday came with plenty of favours from rivals but it should not be undersold...
13 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Dec 13, 20184 min read
Is Hong Kong's December showpiece under the threat of Japan Cupification?
On a cool, glorious Sha Tin afternoon, the Longines International that carries the least enthusiasm for the local fans was the key result...
37 views0 comments
Alan Aitken
Dec 12, 20185 min read
Beauty in the eye of the beholder
Zac Purton had a good day on Sunday but he did miss the chance of his career. A few fellow riders had ribbed him after the Jockey Club...
21 views0 comments
bottom of page