Flintshire has hinted all season that another major victory is well within his capabilities and he proved his point on Sunday with a half-length win in the Longines Hong Kong Cup at Sha Tin.
Trained by Andre Fabre for Prince Khalid Abdullah, the Dansili four-year-old had been runner-up in his previous three outings this term, including in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe when second to Treve, and the Breeders’ Cup Turf.
Flintshire proved best of the five European-trained runners in the Vase, with Red Cadeaux posting another admirable effort to finish less than four lengths back in sixth, two lengths ahead of the second Juddmonte contender, Snow Sky.
Set to remain in training as a five-year-old, Flintshire didn’t start his racing career until the May of his three-year-old season but won the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris on just his fourth start.
The Moyglare Stud-bred Designs On Rome, who started his racing career with Patrick Flynn before being sold to Hong Kong, has been a revelation in his adopted country and landed his second Group 1 success in the Hong Kong Cup, beating fellow Irish-bred Military Attack by a short-head.
