James Cummings heads to Happy Valley fresh from his first Hong Kong winner, and among his two runners is a horse he knows from Australia.
Lucky River, formerly known as Loving, won three of seven starts there, beginning under Cummings before joining Bjorn Baker. The four-year-old makes his Hong Kong debut under Brenton Avdulla in Race 8, the Class 3 Flying Handicap (1,200m).
“I like the way he’s settled in. He’s trialed up with good improvement each time. I’d rather be the buyer than the seller of the horse at the moment,” Cummings said.
“He’s going the right way, and he looks like he’s got a bit of a boxer’s mentality. He’s going to improve with the run. He is tough, he’s solid.”
Cummings also reunites with Jerry Chau Chun-lok, who delivered his breakthrough Hong Kong victory aboard Grand Eagle. Chau rides last-start runner-up Falcon Hunter in Race 2, the Class 5 Success Handicap (1,200m).
“I’d be happy to throw him the silks all throughout the year,” Cummings said.
Derek Leung Ka-chun has enjoyed a remarkable start to the season, but his eight rides at Happy Valley present a different challenge: can he start winning for trainers who have so far enjoyed little of his success?
Leung has ridden 10 winners from 82, more than double the 4.83 expected by the betting market.
Yet nine of those victories came for just four trainers: five for Cody Mo Wai-kit, two for Manfred Man Ka-leung and one each for David Hayes and Mark Newnham. None has booked him on Wednesday.
Instead, Leung rides for Pierre Ng Pang-chi, Danny Shum Chap-shing, Jamie Richards, Dennis Yip Chor-hong, Chris So Wai-yin and Frankie Lor Fu-chuen. His record for those six trainers this season is just one win from 27 rides, almost exactly matching the 1.01 expected.
The absence of his most successful trainer partnerships catches the eye, but Leung has defied market expectations too often this season for his eight rides to be dismissed on that basis.
Six runners from October 7 meet again in Wednesday's Class 4 Speedy Handicap (1,000m), but the barriers tell a different story.
Georgian Sigma, Iron Security and Master Champion filled the placings but now face barriers 12, nine and 11. Georgian Sigma rises five pounds, while beaten rivals Copper Core and Mapogo have gates one and four.
On the B course, barriers one to four have returned 41 placings from 116 starts (35.3 percent), against 17 from 99 (17.2 percent) for gates nine to 12.
Mapogo raced four-wide without cover contesting the lead from gate 12 before fading to eighth, while Copper Core has struck traffic in his last two starts. Gate one gives Derek Leung Ka-chun an opportunity to make use of the draw.
Grand Nova also returns after a first-up seventh from gate one. He jumped only fairly, settled back and was steadied near the 550m when another runner shifted in.
