An open letter to Tony Cruz and Wong Wing Keung
 

Dear Sirs:

YEA! AREN'T YOU EXCITED??? :D :zz: :tro:

Ooops, better start over.

Dear Sirs:

Thank you for all the Bullish boys, especially Bullish Luck.:{>:

After the Yasuda Kinen, perhaps he'd like to go here (?).

http://www.livinglegends.org.au/index.html

Just a thought.

Fondly,

my miss storm cat

I thought it was going to say "dont double cross the triads again so they dont have to break into your house and administer a beat down again".

Oh good, we're all in agreement then. :D :confused:

OH I LOVE YOU WONG WING!!!!!

Upon retirement... BULLISH LUCK TO LIVING LEGENDS!!!!!!!! :) :{>: :tro: :cool:

You know, I think Prebble said it best. Bullish Luck doesn't owe anyone anything...

as did Silent Witness when it was obvious he wasn't his brilliant self after that fantastic unbeaten streak.

... and so how appropriate that the stablemates will be re-joined at LL. :)

From SCMP.


Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Bullish Luck's future in handicapper's hands


Alan Aitken in Tokyo


Jockey Club handicapper Nigel Gray has the future of stalwart star Bullish Luck in his hands following the nine-year-old's defeat in the Yasuda Kinen on Sunday.

Bullish Luck finished a well-beaten 14th under the unsuitable conditions, though he made history simply by turning up as the only foreign horse to have run three times in the race.

"The wide draw and the loose going were right against him," trainer Tony Cruz said yesterday. "He was wide and using himself too much, too early and it wasn't his sort of ground. He was never confortable."

But the next move at Sports Road will determine if Bullish Luck has run his last race, with compulsory retirement looming when he turns 10 and the clock ticking on just how much more he has the opportunity to give.

Bullish Luck was bred in the northern hemisphere and he turns 10 on January 1.

"I have spoken to Nigel Gray about this and, the way the programming is, there isn't a race for Bullish Luck now until late October or November, and he isn't a horse who can come out and race well straight after a spell now," Cruz said.

"He needs to have a race or two to find his form. If there was programming that allowed him to start a bit earlier then he will keep racing but if the programme stays the way it is, then I think he might be retired," he added.

Bullish Luck's record comprises 24 starts at Group One level alone at home and overseas, winning five and finishing in the first four on 14 occasions, including a Yasuda Kinen victory two years ago and a third in last year's Dubai World Cup, as well as domestic top level victories in the Champions Mile (twice), the Hong Kong Gold Cup and Stewards' Cup, and stake money of more than HK$62 million.

Owner Wong Wing-keung has already made arrangements for Bullish Luck to rejoin his old stablemate, Silent Witness, at Melbourne's Legends park in Australia when the gelding is retired.

Be still my heart... first listing of trackwork since (pre-Tokyo) June.

BULLISH LUCK

Date Type Racecourse/Track Workouts Gear
01/08/2008 Trotting Sha Tin SmT SmT 1 Round - Fast C.H.Tse

Wonder if gets to swim during the Olympics...

Dear Gentlemen,

Is it me? Is it time?

It wasn't sad to watch his barrier trial but it looked like maybe it's time to plan a farewell at Sha Tin for your beloved champion.

Fondly and with great affection,

my miss storm cat

SCMP...

Monday, October 20, 2008

Change of venue does trick for Bullish Win

MURRAY BELL

Owner Wong Wing-keung and trainer Tony Cruz welcomed a young Bullish to the winners' circle, while planning the final hurrah from the most famous Bullish of all.

Bullish Win, handled by Eric Saint-Martin, made it three wins from 19 starts with a no-frills victory in the American Club Challenge Cup (1,650m), a fitting reward for some consistent form in the 11 months that have elapsed since his last win at Sha Tin.

A change of venue to the city course and being stretched out from his staple diet of 1,400m races proved the right recipe, as Cruz believed it would.

"He's been racing really well but he's drawn barrier 14 at his last two starts and, nobody's fault, but he just hasn't been able to get a good trip at all," Cruz said.

"Today from a good barrier, Eric has been able to get him into a good position and the slightly softer tempo of mile racing seems to have agreed with him. Now that he's shown he likes the place, I think we'd better bring him back here again."

Wong's ageing champion Bullish Luck will start on Sunday in the Mission Hills Sha Tin Mile Trophy in what, at best, will be a campaign of three races before his retirement.

"He's a nine-year-old and I don't think it would be a good look, campaigning a horse like him as a 10-year-old, so he'll have these few races before calling it a day," Cruz said.

"He'll start off in the Mile Trophy next weekend and if he comes through that OK, he'll run in the Cathay Pacific International Cup Trial. Then, if he runs well enough there to get invited to the Hong Kong Cup, that will be his final race."

With 10 wins and more than HK$62 million in prize money, Bullish Luck is one of the great horses in Hong Kong. :tro: :{>: :)

He was Horse of the Year in 2006, with his big victories that term being a second Champions Mile and the Yasuda Kinen in Tokyo. His earnings rank second only to Vengeance Of Rain (HK$75.4 million) on the all-time list.

Did I ever tell you I know Eric? :) I remember when he was just a kid starting out riding. What a spoiled brat he was back then (1990):p . Man! Could his Dad ride or what?!

I thought he had run his last race...This smells

I've only followed racing since 2004 so I had to look up his dad.:eek:

Duh! :D

I didn't know you knew him... very cool.

He didn't fire in that last barrier trial.

Hopefully, if he doesn't in this next race, they start planning a farewell at Sha Tin.

He has nothing left to prove.

He's a true champion (but i know you're with me on that unlike some others...)

(I'd have retired him last season but that's just me).

Hopefully they do right by him as they did for Silent Witness.

Trust me, you don't wanna get me started and YES they did what was right.

Eventually.

We should leave it at that, huh? :)

Viva Pataca wins and pays over $20 to win, can't believe he went off at that price. Go figure?

Bullish Luck hopefully will retire gracefully now.

I wish I stayed up, probably be a little richer this morning had I known that! :zz: :$:

Did he? I haven't checked results yet but yeah... with Good Ba Ba and Floral Peg in the same race i can see that.

I wouldn't have had him... sorry you didn't stay up!

Hope my Bullish boy fired anyway and if not, hope that's it now.

At 10-1 he definitely should have been on a few tickets, he ran so good in the Dubai Sheema this year and was well regarded in it also. Did Hong Kong proud in the race if I recall.