Hong Kong Jockey Club prepares raid on top Australian jockeys
After years of being caught up in Covid lockdowns and quarantine nightmares, the Asian racing mecca is finally firing again and on the hunt for new riders
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The Hong Kong Jockey Club is preparing a raid on some of Australia’s top jockeys after years of being caught up in debilitating Covid lockdowns and hefty hotel quarantine stints.
Big names Hugh Bowman and Jye McNeil are atop the list for the Asian racing mecca, with at least one of the two expected to take up a short-term contract over the winter, when it is traditionally quiet in Australia.
With Joao Moreira recently returning to Brazil and champion Zac Purton openly questioning how much longer he has left in the saddle, Hong Kong is in need of big names to fly the flag.
Speculation was rife among local media last week that a deal had been done to bring Bowman to Hong Kong, however an announcement is yet to be made by the notoriously quiet Jockey Club licensing committee which is headed up by former Victorian chief steward Terry Bailey.
The Melbourne Cup-winning McNeil has been on their radar for several years.
The Hong Kong government only recently removed the requirement for hotel quarantine, opening the doors to the city for visitors for the first time since early in 2020.
Legendary hoop Shane Dye earlier this year laid bare the financial lure of riding in Hong Kong, saying Purton would be the highest-paid Australian jockey in the world.
Purton this week admitted he has been trying to lure superstar James McDonald to Hong Kong recently and highlighted just how lucrative it could be.
“At the end of the day when he looks at his bank account and he looks at my bank account, he’s stupid for staying in Australia,” Purton told SEN.
“He can stay (in Australia), win all the trophies, get all the accolades, and at the end of his career he’ll still have a mortgage on his home. It’s as simple as that. Financially it just doesn’t make sense.
“You can make six to seven times comfortably (in Hong Kong) what he would make a year.”
McDonald quickly responded, saying Sydney was home “for now.”
Jockey Club heavyweights attempted to get subsequent Caulfield Cup-winning jockey Michael Dee to Hong Kong earlier in the year, but it is understood he knocked them back due to the 21-day hotel quarantine protocols that were in place at the time.
Outside of Purton, Luke Currie is the only other Australian on the riding roster in Hong Kong following the high-profile departure of Blake Shinn at the end of last season.
Originally published as Hong Kong Jockey Club prepares raid on top Australian jockeys
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