Brett Crawford’s first winner in Hong Kong, Speedy Smartie, was fittingly ridden by his former Cape Town stable jockey, Karis Teetan (Picture HKJC)
Stalwart former Cape Town-based trainer Brett Crawford scored a double at Sha Tin in Hong Kong on Sunday to get off the mark on the island and it was a great day overall for ex-pat South Africans because Luke Ferraris and Keagen de Melo rode one-two in the feature race of the meeting.
Crawford’s double means he is going at a strike rate of 28.5%, because in five meetings on the island he has only had seven runners in all, and it will have seem him climbing into midtable on the trainers’ log.
Fittingly his winners were respectively ridden by Karis Teetan and Lyle Hewitson.
Teetan, a Mauritian South African Jockey Academy graduate, was Crawford’s stable jockey in Cape Town at one stage.
Hewitson’s first career Gr 1 win was on the Crawford-trained Undercover Agent in the Gold Challenge of 2018 at Hollywoobets Greyville.
The New Zealand-bred Speedie Smarty was Crawford’s first runner in Hong Kong, finishing second in the first race of the 2025/2026 season, and yesterday the six-year-old gelding became his first winner on the racing-mad island.
In yesterday’s all weather race over 1200m Speedy Smartie started favourite paying 2.70 on the Tote and he pinged the gate from draw three. A low drawn horse prevented Teetan from claiming the rail but in the meantime Luke Ferraris on 19/1 outsider Notthesillyone came from a wide draw to take the lead. Speedy Smartie went around the latter and joined him in the straight. He was clearly travelling with plenty in hand. He duly fought Ferraris’ mount off and was going well enough to hold off the late charge of 17/1 shot Double Bingo. Speedy Smartie was formerly trained by Benno Yung and had his first career win in his last start of last season under Ferraris. He has now had 30 starts for two wins, four seconds and four thirds. He ran off a lowly 34 rating in yesterday’s Class 5 event and carried 129 pounds, six pounds less than topweight.
In the third race of the day, a Class 5 event over 1600m on the turf, the New Zealand-bred six-year-old gelding Ninja Derby had had 31 starts in Hong Kong for one win, two seconds and a third, having arrived from Ausralia as a two-time winner. He was formerly trained by Tony Cruz and the only thing in his favour yesterday was that he had been dropped three points from last season to a lowly 28. The other point in his favour was being in the yard of Crawford, who is not only a proven fine conditioner but he does not have a big string and is able to give every horse a lot of attention. Ninja Derby jumped from the widest draw of all in the 14 horse field and shot into the lead. In the straight he never looked like being caught and won by an easy 2,75 lengths to give Crawford a double from just two runners and Hewitson his third win of the season.
The importance of starting well is common knowledge in Hong Kong, where owners place a lot of importance in how lucky a trainer or jockey appears to be. Crawford has passed that test it seems, with three top three places in his first three outings and now two wins after just seven runs in all.
Luke Ferraris had a breakthrough term last season when becoming associated with a top horse or two. The best of those horses was the Mark Newnham-trained Australian-bred Flying Artie gelding My Wish, who won the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Mile, before finishing second in both the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Cup and in the HK$26 million Hong Kong Derby. He followed that with an excellent fourth in the Gr 1 HK$24 million FWD Champions Mile.
Yesterday, Ferraris and My Wish converted favouritism in the HK$4.2 MillionCelebration Cup, a handicap over 1400m. My Wish carried 130 pounds off a merit rating of 105 and was well drawn in barrier four. My Wish broke superbly and ended up in the box seat. It is not always a favourable position to be in at Sha Tin because without false rails the gaps need to open in the straight. Ferraris had to sit patiently with a ton in hand in the straight and as soon as he spotted a gap opening between the front pair he drove My Wish through to score by 1,25 lengths from the rank outsider Copartner Prance, who was showing 103 on the Tote and was ridden by Keagan de Melo.
