The battle for a place in the LONGINES International Jockeys’ Championship sparked to life at Happy Valley on Wednesday night (12 November) when a host of riders landed blows in the fight for a coveted spot in the annual showcase.

It was freelance jockey Matthew Poon who took the biggest step towards the HK$1 million extravaganza as he claimed a double to kick off the evening’s action, moving on to six wins for the season.

It continued a rich vein of form for the product of The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Apprentice Jockeys’ School, who has now registered wins in five of the last six meetings. This after being forced to wait until his 70th ride before opening his account this season.

With just two weeks until the 26 November cut-off date, when the local participants in the Happy Valley exhibition are determined, the focus in the jockey ranks has naturally turned to qualification for the most lucrative jockey challenge in racing. But Poon was determined to remain focused on the winners that will get him there.

“I can’t really think about IJC. I just want to ride more winners, that’s all I want,” Poon said, “but it was a good day. Three winners would have been better, but I still feel good.”

Poon struck first after hanging on to claim the opening Class 5 Bedford Handicap (1650m) aboard Lucky Blessing (130lb), who registered his first win at start 13 for trainer Cody Mo.

Double Bingo (121lb) transferred some splendid dirt form into a first Hong Kong victory as Poon grabbed a race-to-race double in the Class 5 Cheong Wan Handicap (1200m) for Me Tsui with a wonderfully timed dart to the line, which denied Hugh Bowman on Riding High (131lb).

“I’m happy that I could ride another winner for Me Tsui,” Poon said. “That horse (Double Bingo) I’ve ridden a few times, and I’ve only managed second or third, so I was keen to ride a winner for them and was lucky to do it tonight. I feel happy.”

Poon is in pursuit of compatriot and former LONGINES IJC champion Vincent Ho in the race for the spot allocated to the leading freelance jockey. Poon trails Ho six to eight following tonight’s meeting after Ho answered Poon’s double with a win of his own when he took out the Class 4 Chinese General Chamber Of Commerce 125th Anniversary Cup Handicap (1650m) on the battle-hardened Turin Warrior (125lb) for trainer Manfred Man.

Keith Yeung kept alive his own slim hopes of making the LONGINES IJC cut when he closed impressively to claim the second section of the Class 4 Fat Tseung Handicap (1200m) on long-shot Team Team Folks (122lb). The Jimmy Ting-trained four-year-old was unremarkable in his first three Hong Kong outings dating back to May, but scored on his Happy Valley debut to kick off his four-year-old season.

Also in the hunt to secure a debut LONGINES IJC berth as the leading jockey (behind Zac Purton, who automatically qualifies as Hong Kong’s champion jockey), Luke Ferraris secured a fourth win of the season in partnership with Douglas Whyte to salute in the first section of the Class 4 Fat Tseung Handicap (1200m) on the improving King Oberon (127lb). It was a gutsy showing from the son of Divine Prophet, who rallied at the 150-metre mark to prevail by half-a-length, his second straight Happy Valley win.

“He’s definitely improved. I think the switch to the Valley has been the key to it,” Whyte said. “A bit of give in the ground and the relentless tempo, he wants a hard-run race.

“He’s come across as if he could be a 1400 metre-horse, but it’s just a little bit too far for him … but he’s a good horse – like tonight, when he’s three-wide like that, he can cope with that kind of pressure as long as he can get rolling.”

Angus Chung moved on to six wins for the season as he held on to claim the second section of the Class 4 Cheung Shun Handicap (1650m) with Tony Cruz-trained veteran Beauty Glory (130lb) under strong late pressure from Zac Purton on Mark Newnham’s Bull Attitude (126lb).

Purton didn’t have to wait long to extend his lead at the top of the jockeys’ standings to 21 wins, landing the subsequent Class 3 Fife Handicap (1200m) on Chateauneuf (135lb) for David Hayes, who closed the trainers’ championship gap on pace-setting Mark Newnham to four (16-20).

Awesome Fluke (130lb) took the Class 3 Hing Yip Handicap (1800m) in a thrilling blanket finish under Ellis Wong for Ricky Yiu, before Alexis Badel and Huge Wave (121lb) claimed the nightcap, the Class 2 Shing Yip Handicap (1650m), to seal a double for Ting.

Hong Kong racing continues at Sha Tin on Saturday (15 November).