Purton grabs the lead from Moreira
A double on Sunday helps Purton in his quest for the HK champion jockey's title
Zac Purton will enter the final nine meetings of the Hong Kong racing season as the jockeys' championship leader for the first time this term after the Australian rider scored a double at Sha Tin on Sunday.
Purton has been engaged in a titanic battle with Joao Moreira, the three-time champion jockey who served the second day of a two-meeting suspension on Sunday.
At the start of proceedings on Members' Day at Sha Tin, Moreira held a precarious one-win lead, 116 to 115, over Purton.
Shaking off a bout of the flu that left him congested and unwell, Purton drew level in the title race when the Ricky Yiu-trained Little Bird strode clear in the Class 4 Beas River Country Club Handicap over 1,200m. He then gained the upper hand with Starship's victory in the Class 4 The Hilltop In The Valley Handicap over 1,400m for trainer Paul O'Sullivan.
"Obviously, it's a better position when you are in front, so that's great," said Purton.
"Sometimes, people can expect a little bit too much - I was doing the sums in the room and, if you ride two winners a meeting through 88 meetings, it's 176 winners a year. You are breaking records if you do that every meeting.
"Riding four or five winners at every meeting just doesn't happen. I didn't have a great book of rides, but I came here thinking I could ride two winners and I've left with two winners, so that's a positive.
"I t's going to be a good battle from here - I just want to clear my head and get rid of the flu, so that I can attack properly."
The Class 5 Racing Heritage Handicap was not a contest that looked to have many storylines pre-race. However, it is a race that will forever be remembered by young rider Jack Wong, who steered the Me Tsui-trained Exponents to victory in the 1,400m contest.
That win took Wong to 70 Hong Kong victories, the number that marks the end of his apprenticeship. From tomorrow, Wong will be classified as a senior rider, although he will still benefit from a three-pound (1.36kg) claim.
"As apprentices, from the moment we start back in Hong Kong, it is our goal to get to 70 winners, so I'm very happy to have finished that task and relieved as well," said Wong.
"The next stage is tougher, no doubt, but I'm looking forward to the test."
Wong's apprenticeship involved an overseas stint in New Zealand before returning to Hong Kong's riding ranks in March 2015.
His career has been interrupted by leg and back injuries that have required long periods on the sidelines, but the jockey believes that those breaks have helped him to reach the 70-win milestone so quickly.
"I have been back in Hong Kong three years but I probably have only been riding for a total of two years, because of the time on the sidelines, so to finish my time as an apprentice in two years, I'm very happy with that," said Wong. - HKJC
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