On a day that delivered a personal milestone, Frankie Lor may also have uncovered the horse capable of defining his next one.
Lor trained his 500th Hong Kong winner on Saturday when three-year-old Salon S scored earlier on the card, but it was two races later that the Sha Tin meeting took on more significance. Numbers, a former Australian stayer with Group 1 Derby form, produced a controlled, authoritative win over 2,000 metres that stamped him as a legitimate 2026 BMW Hong Kong Derby contender.
Lor has been here before. He won the 2019 Derby with Furore, who also captured the Classic Mile along the way, and Numbers now gives him another genuine chance to add a second blue-riband to his record.
Ridden positively by Derek Leung, Numbers took control of a Class 2 over the Derby trip, rolling along at a comfortable tempo before lifting again in the straight to hold off the honest stayer Winning Wing. It was not flashy but it was decisive — and as good a marker as we have seen, at least from a staying perspective, from the 2026 Derby candidates.
The win will push Numbers’ rating into the high-80s, effectively locking in his place in the Four-Year-Old Classic Series. That alone is significant in a season where the top end has already thinned out. Jamie Richards’ Bulb General is sidelined with a serious leg injury, while last season’s champion griffin Sky Jewellery bled in a barrier trial and will miss the series altogether.
Suddenly, contenders are at a premium and Numbers has answered at last one key question, that of distance, early.
Lor said he is leaning towards keeping the gelding at 2,000 metres rather than dropping back to the Classic Mile on February 1, unless the owners – part of his Trainer Syndicate – prefer to take the traditional path. The Classic Cup over 1,800 metres follows on March 1, before the Derby at 2,000 metres three weeks later on March 22.
“He can handle 2,000, 2,200, even 2,400,” Leung said. “Big stride, big rhythm. He doesn’t stop. Even with cover, maybe he’s better – like he was in Australia – but he can go forward, switch off and just keep going.”
That versatility matters. Hong Kong's unique Derby is often a tactical, stop-start affair where positioning and initiative can decide the race as much as raw talent. Having the option to roll forward – or at least be on the pace – is a valuable weapon.
Numbers’ profile is not dissimilar to 2016 Derby winner Werther, who arrived in Hong Kong with just four wins from 14 starts and a Queensland Derby second to his name. Numbers brings a remarkably similar CV: seventh in the Victoria Derby, fifth in the Australian Derby and second in this year’s Queensland Derby, beaten less than a length at Eagle Farm .
Well exposed? Perhaps. But also proven over the trip, battle-hardened and now showing he can make his own luck in Hong Kong conditions.
“In Hong Kong, sometimes a front-runner is better,” Lor said. “Especially in races like the Derby, when the pace is slow and you’re stuck behind, it can be very difficult for the jockey.”
