John Size seized the moment at Sha Tin on Sunday, with a similarly named galloper completing the 11-time champion trainer’s second treble of the current campaign and extending his lead in this season’s title race to double digits for the first time.

Seizing The Moment’s long-priced triumph under Alexis Badel in the card-closing Class Three Tulip Handicap (1,400m) followed the expected victories of two Zac Purton-ridden favourites, Simple Hedge and Golden Express, earlier on the weather-delayed programme.

Of Size’s three winners on a wet and wild day, the star performer was Golden Express, who became the handler’s second youngster to notch a hat-trick of victories this term when he stormed to success in the Class Two Hong Kong Chiu Chow Centenary Cup (1,200m).

Backed into $1.45 favouritism because of not only his consecutive one-and-three-quarter-length Class Three wins over Sha Tin’s 1,200m but also his wet-track form in Australia – he won his only pre-import start by a space on a soft-rated surface – Golden Express won his Class Two debut by another wide margin.

Golden Express trailed habitual front runner Nervous Witness by four lengths as the field turned for home, but he ate into that deficit in the first half of the home straight and raced away from his rivals under a hands-and-heels Purton ride to win by two and three-quarter lengths.

Mindful of talking Jockey Club handicappers into whacking Golden Express for the third time – his previous victories attracted nine- and 10-point penalties – Purton did not want to hype up the four-year-old son of Not A Single Doubt’s latest win.

“For a Class Two, it was a very weak race. He’s got a liking for a soft track, and I was out in the better ground, so things were in his favour. We had the speed on and that helped him relax. He did a good job. Hopefully, he can go on with it,” Purton said.

Size, whose other young hat-trick scorer this season was Beauty Eternal before he finished third as the Hong Kong Derby (2,000m) favourite, was delighted with Golden Express’ continued development.

“He’s making very good progress. Since his first three runs, he’s been very good,” said Size, who added he would have to look at the racing calendar before deciding whether to keep Golden Express at 1,200m or give him another assignment at 1,400m.

Size is a hard marker. On his only previous run over 1,400m, which came at his second start, Golden Express placed third to Super Sunny Sing and Voyage Bubble, finishing no more than one length behind the two gallopers who, between them, won this term’s three Classic Series contests.

Before Jockey Club officials put a temporary halt on Sunday’s proceedings at Sha Tin, Simple Hedge won the first section of the Class Four Dandelion Handicap (1,200m).

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Simple Hedge became the latest galloper to break the heart of serial placegetter Moduleconstruction when the $2.85 favourite hit the front inside the final 50m and defeated his luckless opponent by a neck.

Size leads this season’s trainers’ championship with 59 wins, which is 10 more than one of his former assistants, Frankie Lor Fu-chuen. Purton has ridden 129 winners this term as he chases Joao Moreira’s single-season record of 170 victories.