Jubilant after a Happy Valley treble, Zac Purton lavished praise on Bottomuptogether after Frankie Lor`s durable sprinter claimed the HK$2.84 million Class 2 LONGINES Cup Handicap (1000m) on Wednesday night (21 October).



Despite carrying 135lb and jumping from the outside gate of barrier 10, Bottomuptogether forged to the lead under nine-time Hong Kong Champion Jockey Purton and, after comfortably dictating terms, had a length and three-quarters to spare at the finish from Horsepower (118lb), with Glowing Praises (108lb) third.



Clocking 56.76s, Bottomuptogether posted his seventh career victory – with six of those triumphs coming under Purton, including three successive wins from the Shamus Award gelding`s first three starts.



“He`s been a terrific horse, a prolific winner and he`s honest. He gets out there and does it the hard way. He had that again tonight – top weight, widest gate, showed good speed to get across,” Purton said.



“He was always in a lovely rhythm and obviously got that gap on them and held on. It was typical of him.”



Bottomuptogether`s fourth Class 2 victory boosted the six-year-old`s career earnings to HK$14.26 million as Lor contemplates racing in further Group races with the 100-rater.



“I think so because maybe they (handicappers) will give him five or six points, which means he`ll be 105 or 106. You can`t wait too long for the other races,” Lor said.



Purton also scored on Ace for Mark Newnham and David Hayes-trained Turin Champions to have 25 wins for the campaign – 13 clear of Vincent Ho (12) and apprentice Nichola Yuen (11).



Mark Newnham-trained Ace (128lb) made a perfect Happy Valley debut by claiming the second section of the Class 4 Racing Spirit Handicap (1650m). A dual winner at Sha Tin, the five-year-old was given an economical ride by Purton.



Hayes praised Purton`s tactical enterprise after Turin Champions (132lb) win in the first section of the Class 4 Racing Spirit Handicap (1650m).



“He had no luck last start and Zac, full compliments to him, he summed up the race - they went fast and he got a bit tired late, second up at 1600m. But, I think he could be a really good Happy Valley horse,” Hayes said. “Zac said `do you mind if I grab the race by the scruff of the neck and put him in the race?` and it worked - a good, positive ride. He read it different than most - that`s probably why he`s at the top, isn`t he?”



James Orman rode his first treble in Hong Kong with the wins of Verbier, Malpensa and Solid Win as Caspar Fownes fired in a double to vault into second place overall with 11 wins behind Pierre Ng (12) in the trainers` championship after the successes of Verbier and Super Sixty.



Verbier (132lb) slotted his second course and distance victory, emerging late under Orman to snare the Class 5 Success Handicap (1200m) before Super Sixty (121lb) finished powerfully for Ellis Wong to land the Class 4 Speedy Handicap (1000m).



Orman`s strong season continued with the success of Chris So`s Malpensa (134lb) in the second section of the Class 4 Swifty Handicap (1200m) and Ricky Yiu`s Solid Win (129lb) in the Class 3 Songs Of Victory Handicap (1650m).



The Australian has nine wins for the term and is targeting another 30-win season.



“It`s my first treble in Hong Kong and I`m very excited, very happy,” Orman said. “I came here with good rides but didn`t really expect to get three wins but I`ve been working hard this season and slowly getting the results.



“It would be good to pass 30 wins for the season but everyone knows how hard it is and I would like to ride a black type winner here, but it`s hard with my weight.”



Wong improved his haul to seven after Danny Shum`s Leading Agility (115lb) proved too strong in the Class 3 Flying Handicap (1200m), as Yuen continued an outstanding season by partnering Virtus Glory (123lb) to victory in the first section of the Class 4 Swifty Handicap (1200m) for Yiu, taking her seasonal tally to 11 wins.



Hong Kong racing continues at Sha Tin on Sunday (25 October) with the running of the HK$5.35 million G2 Lukfook Jewellery Premier Bowl Handicap (1200m).