Harbour Master has the look of a horse going places this season and after falling victim to a lack of tempo last start, the John Moore-trained topweight can take advantage of another low draw in the final leg of tomorrow night's Triple Trio at Happy Valley.
Now rated 104, chances to race at the smaller and more forgiving city track will soon become scarce for Harbour Master if he continues his rich vein of form in what has been a breakout term.
The five-year-old has been unplaced just once this season, and that was first-up over an unsuitable 1,200m, but he has really found his niche since being switched to the Valley at his last three runs.
Two convincing victories made Harbour Master favourite for one of the rare Group races at the circuit, the Group Three January Cup earlier this month.
Jockey Joao Moreira, who rides again tomorrow over the same 1,800m course, did not do much wrong from gate three on that occasion, and Harbour Master was only beaten a neck into third by two horses that were positioned ahead of him in the run and dictated the race - winner Pleasure Gains and runner-up Khaya.
The concern this time is weight as he drops back into a Class Two with a 105 top rating, which means Harbour Master goes from carrying 115 pounds to lumping 133 pounds - of course against horses with less credentials then he faced two weeks ago.
Bank on Harbour Master's course and distance credentials and that he is still rated below his best by the handicapper.
The biggest danger to Harbour Master could be rejuvenated import Helene Super Star (Douglas Whyte), the 2013 UAE Derby winner whose 2014 Hong Kong Derby campaign was cruelled by respiratory issues.
Since then he has bounced back with an all-the-way win late last term, and some good form this season - in which he certainly has not been missed by Tony Cruz.
Helene Super Star has already raced seven times since September and comes into this off a better-than-it-looks-on-paper sixth in the January Cup, after a two-lengths fifth at level weights to Designs On Rome in the Hong Kong Cup.
Helene Super Star was arguably even more a victim of the tempo than Harbour Master in the January Cup, and he meets him three pounds better here.
The top two have some appeal as a double banker combination, and consider Gun Pit (Vincent Ho Chak-yiu), Jolly Victor (Maxime Guyon) and Sunny Ying (Nash Rawiller).
More than most racetracks, barriers matter at Happy Valley, but particularly when the rail is in its widest configuration - the C + 3 - like tomorrow night.
In the opening leg, take Chris So Wai-yin's in-form miler Win It in a Class Four, after the frontrunner came up with gate one. Drawn alongside in two and the biggest danger is Vara Pearl (Zac Purton), presenting another opportunity for a double banker. The form of the others is patchy - play as many as possible, leading with Elegance Klammer (Moreira) and Heroic Guru (Whyte).
The middle leg is an incredibly competitive Class Three sprint over 1,200m.
Victorius (Rawiller) comes back to his favoured course and distance with a kind draw, and he goes in as banker ahead of Precision King (Brett Prebble), Dining World (Purton) and Tango Fire (Moreira).
