Copartner Prance (left) and Keagan de Melo hold on for victory. Photos: Kenneth Chan
Keagan de Melo celebrated his first Hong Kong Group win when $26 outsider Copartner Prance led them a merry dance in the Group Three Premier Cup (1,400m) at Sha Tin on Sunday evening.
The South African has not hit any great heights this season and his success aboard Francis Lui Kin-wai’s Copartner Prance, who also landed a Group-race breakthrough, was a much-needed tonic.
Copartner Prance sat on the shoulder of Victor The Winner for the first part of the race, but De Melo took the outright lead at the 1,000m peg and, on a day when front runners were tough to rein in, it was a decisive move.
A host of challengers came to try and steal the prize in the straight, but De Melo remained all action and drove his mount home to beat Happy Together by a head.
