Tick of approval for Pins’ son

3 April 2013

Approve broke through for his first win in Hong Kong on Monday night when tops at Sha Tin for a leading trainer-jockey combination. The Pins three-year-old was ridden by Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Brett Prebble for John Moore.

An $AUD370,000 Sydney Easter Sale yearling for breeders WS, the gelding had weighed in four times from his previous eight appearances before making his mark in a class four event over 1600 metres. Approve is the only foal out of the Danasinga mare Heavenly, who died prematurely, and is a grand-son of the three-time NZ Broodmare of the Year Flying Floozie.

O’Reilly again made his presence felt on the Sha Tin card with his son K-Mouchi claiming the class five sprint. The four-year-old is out of Zabeels Angel, the winner of nine races including the Gr 3 Winter Cup at Riccarton.

Pure Alpha delivers again as Ardrossan continues to rise

Ardrossan gelding Pure Alpha led throughout to win by 1.29 lengths at Eagle Farm for owner Ozzie Kheir, taking his earnings past $300,000. The result caps a stellar run for sire Ardrossan, whose yearlings fetched up to $450,000 this year on strong Hong Kong form.

28 August 2026

The Corner with Garry Chittick

It is difficult to maintain momentum when sitting in judgment of racing’s governance. After all, I get no pleasure in searching for non-credible decisions, but one is perpetually bewildered by the rationale behind many of the positions that make little sense.