HOUSE OF FUN

27th December 2016

It was a new and surprising House Of Fun when everything went the Price Bloodstock galloper’s way at Sha Tin on Tuesday in a breathtaking performance that certainly had the handicapper’s attention.

Backers of the short-priced favourite were happy as the Starcraft gelding ran away to win by almost six lengths but trainer John Size and the Fun Loving Syndicate which owns the four-year-old probably didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when House Of Fun was lifted 14 points in the ratings for the third victory of his 9-start career.

“The handicapper hasn’t made it easy for him, that’s for sure,” said Size. “The horse had won his Class Four races by a head and by three-quarters of a length so I certainly wasn’t expecting anything like this going up to Class Three. But the difference today was that he jumped better. He wasn’t the best out and had to be pushed and shoved to get a position in those other races and obviously wasted some energy doing that. The good start and a good early pace this time meant that he found a place quite quickly and was able to relax and conserve his energy for the straight.”

The good news was the win pushed House Of Fun’s earnings through the $2 million barrier, the bad news was that he is now in Class Two.

“That’s not easy. A lot of horses can look good in Class 4 and Class 3 but meet tougher opposition in Class 2 – it usually sorts the men from the boys so we’ll see if the handicapper is right or not,” said Size.