STILL VERY MUCH IN CRUZ CONTROL…
- Hans Ebert
- Oct 13
- 3 min read
It’s hard to believe that someone with such an illustrious career in horse racing that he has can fly under the radar- but that’s exactly what Tony Cruz does and seems chilled enough to be doing it. He really has nothing to prove.
It’s something that I was thinking about after a determined ride by highly promising apprentice jockey Angus Chung to win the second race at Shatin on Sunday.
Indentured to “Cruzy”, he must realise how lucky he is to have all the experience and guile of one of Hong Kong’s favourite sons who’s enjoyed success in international racing in his twenties and rode the crest of a wave to become the city’s multiple champion jockey and then, champion trainer- and wannabe karaoke kingpin.
As someone who has known Tony aka “Putha Man” for over four decades, he’s always been his own man- definitely not through arrogance, but through confidence and not suffering fools gladly, something a couple of owners have found out when being turfed out of his stable.
Everyone who is someone knows Tony, and I was wondering if he’s been awarded a Bauhinia Star for his contributions to Hong Kong through his achievements in horse racing.
If not, why the hell not?
What an amazing career in racing Tony Cruz has had- and it’s not over yet. He’s been a success in Europe and the United Kingdom during the late eighties when he rode against some of the best in the world- Piggott, Eddery, Fallon, Carson, Cauthen- before taking control of the turf when returning to Hong Kong.
“Tony was right up there with the best, and riding for some of the most powerful owners in the world” remembers Brent Thomson who rode against him in Europe. “His international success was something quite incredible for a small racing jurisdiction like Hong Kong to have a home grown talent mixing it with the best and beating them when racing in Europe was enjoying a golden era”.
As a trainer, Tony had Matthew Chadwick indentured to his stable and they had an incredible run, especially when the apprentice was a 10-pound claimer, and still has the occasional ride for his old boss.
About ten years ago, I asked Tony why he didn’t have a stable jockey. His answer was to the point: “Putha, man, with all the good jockeys riding here, I have such a choice! Why do I need a stable jockey?” He then proceeded to tell me how little prize money he won on the champion galloper Co-Tack despite all their wins
I remember Neil Callan was standing next to him and Tony laughing and saying- as only he can- “Man, this guy gets a million dollars for winning one race. Co-Tack and I had to win almost every major race in Hong Kong to get close to that type of money!”
It’s only money, Tony…
From the days when Felix Coetzee and Tony guided champion galloper Silent Witness to become a global success, he has always tried to support the local riders. It makes sense that the Tony Cruz Award was introduced to recognise the season’s most successful Hong Kong born rider.
He is also known to carefully picked those who follow his instructions- Karis Teetan, Neil Callan, below, Hugh Bowman, Zac Purton, there’s a definite affinity with the riding style and attitude of Brenton Avdulla, and, more recently, Tony has been using the very much untapped talent of Jerry Chau, who might be needing Cruzy’s no nonsense approach to help him realise his potential.
At 68, he’s probably the only person in horse racing who is a household name. To regular racing fans, he’s a legend and exudes the confidence one expects from a champion, both on and off the track
He now just has to slightly fine tune his karaoke skills, especially when tackling the hits of the Stylistics.
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