Frankie Lor Fu-chuen believes Happy Together can handle his first taste of Class One action as the trainer eyes consecutive Chevalier Cup (1,600m) triumphs at Sha Tin on Sunday.

After joining the Lor stable from Richard Gibson at the beginning of the season, Happy Together wasted no time acclimatising to his new surroundings and resumed with a first-up win over 1,600m in September.

It was a similar story when Happy Together returned to the same course and distance earlier this month, with the four-year-old miler edging clear of his Eleanor Handicap rivals to land a Class Two victory at the first time of asking.

Alexis Badel-ridden Happy Together will carry 115 pounds from gate two in the Chevalier Cup as he looks to continue his rapid rise in tandem with the French jockey, although Lor admitted it has not been a simple task getting the son of Dragon Pulse back to winning ways.

“When he came to my stable, he had a problem, so I needed to fix that first,” Lor said. “But he won well last time, and I think he could still be improving. I hope so anyway.”

Victorious on only one of his 10 starts for Gibson last term, Happy Together had been knocking on the door and steadily climbed the ratings, rising from 67 to 73.

Sitting on a rating of 85 after his two recent wins, Happy Together receives weight from all 10 of his Chevalier Cup opponents, and Lor believes his position at the bottom of the Class One handicap makes it worth running him against the likes of Hong Kong Classic Cup (1,800m) hero Super Sunny Sing and multiple Group placegetters.

“We don’t know how far he can go, and that’s why I want to try him in a Class One with this weight,” Lor said. “I’m looking forward to it. He’ll carry a light weight, and 1,600m is good for him.”

Lor recently experienced Class One success with Sauvestre in the Panasonic Cup (1,400m) and bids to record consecutive wins in Sunday’s feature after Keefy routed his rivals 12 months ago.

“If Happy Together wins, it would be really good, but if he goes close, then that would also be great,” Lor said. “I think he can go a little bit further – 1,800m should be no problem for him – but we’ll know more on Sunday.”

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After enjoying a fast start to the season, Lor has drawn a blank from his past 21 runners. The 2021-22 champion handler saddles six on Sunday’s 10-race programme, with his winning chances including four-year-old debutant Loyal Bo Bo in the Class Four Chevalier Lifts & Escalators Handicap (1,000m).

“He’s trialled well, and I’ve put him in over 1,000m to see how he’s going,” Lor said. “Sometimes, like with my horse Beauty Destiny, they can trial really well but not go so well in a race. In his trials, when the jockey has asked Loyal Bo Bo to go, he’s gone, so I think he should be OK.”