Things are only going to get tighter in the jockeys' room with the arrivals of North American Aaron Gryder and Frenchman Johan Victoire this week, and Christophe Soumillon and Andreas Suborics in the not too distant future, and we aren't just talking about where they sit.
Everyone across the board - well, the top of the board especially - might have to be happy with a lower win tally this season.
As noted a week ago in a story on Douglas Whyte's unusually slow start to the term, the leader on the championship table at that stage has generally had 20 or more winners on the board already by meeting 16. Brett Prebble hit 20 wins with Sunday's treble at meeting number 18, and it may be that the century - which has become the accepted benchmark for the championship winner during Whyte's long succession of titles - might only be achieved this season due to the extra five meetings, if at all.
Dubai World Cup winner Gryder told the Daily Racing Form he was hopeful of extending his four-month licence until the end of the season, and whether Sean Woods and Victoire look to extend their partnership longer than the three-month retainer will doubtless depend on results.
But with an extra four senior jockeys here at the start of the new year and the claiming apprentices getting so much air time, it is going to be an even tougher fight for the better rides.
Gryder's invitation is another indication the Jockey Club is attempting to reopen communications with North America. Jockeys from the US have been virtually non-existent for well over a decade. The club will be hoping Gryder has some luck to help build a bridge to others, but it seems an impossible task with riders there earning much more than they could ever hope to get out of Hong Kong.
