Record-breaking Beauty Generation bolts up for eighth time of the season

Beauty Generation, the world’s joint top-rated racehorse, etched himself into the record books with an electric eighth win of the season in Sunday’s Group 1 FWD Champions Mile.

The John Moore-trained six-year-old is now Hong Kong’s highest ever earner on £8.3million and is the only horse from the territory to have won eight races in a single season.

He could now be aimed at his first race outside of Hong Kong since arriving from Australia, with trainer John Moore confirming his liking for racing in Japan while he also heads the betting at 8/1 for the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.

“Definitely, it’s an amazing achievement,” trainer John Moore said of today’s win, “for the stable and all the staff to be able to keep him up and sustain his fitness level to be able to win these races in such a facile fashion. And thanks to Hong Kong that we’ve had a champion in our midst and we’ve still got a champion miler and the whole world knows we’ve got one hell of a miler over here.

“I’d like to go to Japan but of course it is the owner’s call. Patrick (Kwok) and his father (Simon) will make the decision in time. As I said it was a facile win today and I don’t think it took much out of him in the sense of it being such a long season and I still think there’s a lot left in the tank. Let’s go back to the drawing board and have a talk over dinner.”

Moore said the owners have “set other goals” but made it clear he would be keen to have Beauty Generation prove himself beyond his home shores. “The owners would like to see him break Silent Witness’ record of 17 straights win. More pressure on me. I take two heart tablets a day.

“To have him in the yard is any trainer’s dream but if we go to Japan to take on the Japanese armada that will be the real telling factor in his career,” he added.

“It's what we expected him to do today,” said jockey Zac Purton, “he was a little bit fitter. When he's out in front like that mid race and there's nothing around pushing him, he just floats a little bit so my job was to try to keep him rolling and let him do the rest.

“I'd like to think so,” Purton said when asked whether the horse would have more in reserve for a next run, “John wanted me to give him a bit of a push today but….”

And in terms of the ease of today’s win, Purton added: “It's hard to say how much more he's got there but he did his job and that's all you can do.”

Purton has now ridden 21 Group 1 winners in Hong Kong, one shy of Gerald Mosse’s record.

Looking further ahead, connections haven't ruled out Beauty Generation travelling around the world next season, with a trip to Royal Ascot on the agenda. It would be amazing to see the star of Hong Kong strut his stuff in the meeting's curtain raiser.

Elsewhere, Beat The Clock recorded his eighth win and second at Group 1 level in the Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize, while 33/1 outsider Win Bright, trained in Japan, added himself to the illustrious list of QEII Cup winners.