Joao Moreira and Zac Purton look set to trade blows right through to the season’s end and the two champions were at it as usual at Happy Valley on Wednesday (11 March) night, snaring a double apiece.

Moreira bookended the card and headed home with his seven-win advantage still intact, with 35 of the season’s 87 meetings still to go. And, as the Brazilian seeks to regain the title he has watched his rival lift at the end of each of the past two seasons, he was not concerned about three runner-up finishes that slipped by this evening on the heels of six frustrating seconds at Sha Tin on Sunday.

“I don’t look at the seconds and think, what if? Seconds eventually turn to firsts!” he said.

Not even an unlucky whip ‘drop’, which arguably cost him victory in race four, could dampen his pleasure at snaring two more wins.

“The other jockey next to me knocked my whip out of my hand, so what could I do? I can’t stop them waving their whips around, it happens – I’ve probably knocked someone else’s whip in the past,” he explained.

The three-time champion opened the night in excellent fashion, creeping through a sublime rail-shaving ride aboard Break Record in the Class 5 Wan Chai Gap Handicap (1650m). The ‘Magic Man’ stalked coolly in a three-back position and when those ahead of him shifted out on the turn for home, he urged the Danny Shum-trained four-year-old in pursuit, shouting and coaxing for the length of the straight to nick a short-head verdict.

“Gate one helped my horse a lot. We all know that on the ‘C’ Course the gap on the inside will appear when we turn for home and I gambled on that – luckily I was able to go through,” he said.

The whip ‘drop’ incident came 200m out in section two of the Class 4 Tai Yuen Handicap (1200m), just as he was getting a grinding, deep-closing drive out of the neck runner-up Victory Mastery (122lb). Vincent Ho and his old boss Caspar Fownes took the spoils for their seventh win together this term thanks to top-weight E Master (132lb).

But Moreira, in fine form even in defeat, wrapped the card with a punchy success on David Ferraris’ terrier-like Blastoise in the Class 3 Queensway Handicap (1800m).

“What a brave little horse – he’s small in size but he has a big heart. He got a perfect run through but he had so many horses attacking him once he got in front, but he just didn’t give up. Good horses with big hearts don’t give up,” Moreira said.

Purton’s 50% strike

Purton too was in eye-catching form. The reigning champion’s own double maintained his relentless pursuit of his trail-blazing rival. And, in Ricky Yiu, Purton may have a burgeoning ally through the back half of the season.

Yiu, setting the pace at the top of the trainer’s table, provided Purton with the second of his evening’s scores, aboard Villa Fionn in section one of the Class 4 Thomson Handicap (1650m).

“Every time I put Zac on, I want it to be a decent chance, there’s no point putting him on average rides, they need to be good rides, and so that’s why he has a good percentage for me – 50 percent!” Yiu said.

The victory was Purton’s second for Yiu this term, from only four rides.

“It would be nice if I could keep that up; maybe he needs to give me more rides!” Purton said.

Yiu has his own battle on his hands, with Francis Lui pressing closely for the trainers’ title, but the handler admitted that he’s happy to oblige Purton.

“Zac wants to keep his premiership so I’ll give him a hand,” he said, and then added, “Whoever comes along and is available, I don’t mind who gets on my horses; it just depends on who approaches me first. Joao and Zac both are good riders.”

Purton enjoyed a smooth break from gate two on Villa Fionn, settled in a midfield berth on the rail, shifted out at the 400m point and rolled down centre-track to an authoritative one-length win.

“He was perfect today,” the rider said. “He has a habit of being slow out of the gates and being out the back but he jumped brilliantly today and travelled like a winner the whole way. The pace was nice, he had a beautiful run and he came into it like he was going to win easily and he did that.”

Earlier, Purton shone with a make-all ride in section one of the Class 4 Tai Yuen Handicap (1200m). The David Hall-trained seven-year-old defied top-weight of 133lb and won sweetly – the International Sale graduate’s last three wins have come at the course and distance, off a rating of 60, and at the top of Class 4. 

“I took my chance from that gate and went forward; I was lucky to get across; he’s an old horse and he did a good job,” the rider said.

Ho, fourth in the jockeys’ standings, also left with a double. He was on the mark in section two of the Class 3 Johnston Handicap (1200m), partnering top-weight Massive Pocket to success for Lui who remained one win behind Yiu in the long race for the trainers’ premiership.

Wong’s the one for Speed

Last Sunday, Victor Wong enjoyed a first win since returning from injury and he followed up with a front-running score on the Frankie Lor-trained Speed Visionin section one of the Class 3 Johnston Handicap (1200m). The 5lb apprentice has been up top for each of the five-year-old’s last four wins.

“This horse really likes this boy. This is four wins he’s had – some jockeys suit a horse better than other jockeys and this is one of those cases,” Lor said.

“We can see in track work and in barrier trials that Victor is still probably not 100 percent but he’s getting there and his confidence will get better now with his two wins.”

Meanwhile, Shum had a double in his pocket before the night’s midpoint, thanks to Charity Wings’ success under Grant van Niekerk in race three, section two of the Class 4 Thomson Handicap (1650m).

Hong Kong racing continues at Sha Tin on Saturday, 14 March, when the first race will be at 1pm.