Francis Lui Kin-wai is leaving nothing to chance when he unleashes his classy trio of Chancheng Glory, Speed Dragon and Winning Wing on Wednesday’s Group Three January Cup (1,800m) at Happy Valley.

Lui won the race back in 2020 with Doctor Geoff and his three-pronged assault on the Group Three prize gives him the best possible chance of doubling his tally.

Chief among his chances is Chancheng Glory, who has drawn the ideal gate in stall one and has been plying his trade in much tougher races of late.

Second in South Korea on return, he subsequently finished down the field with excuses in the Group Three Sa Sa Ladies’ Purse (1,800m), before coming a valiant seventh in the Group Two Jockey Club Mile at Sha Tin in November.

He was last seen finishing sixth behind Romantic Warrior in the Group One Hong Kong Cup (2,000m), and Lui is hoping he is up to the task.

“He’s an honest horse. I think this is his type of race – it’s his level. He trialled well, and Maxime Guyon knows him. He’s consistent, and in South Korea he performed,” Lui told the Jockey Club.

Lui will also saddle dual course and distance winner Speed Dragon, who will break from barrier seven under Lyle Hewitson.

He ended last season on the sidelines with a pelvis injury but returned with a vengeance to secure the second of his track and distance wins in October, before producing a pair of decent runs in defeat.

Hewitson has ridden him twice, once on debut and then when he ran seventh in the 2024 Hong Kong Derby (2,000m), and he cannot wait to reunite with him at Happy Valley.

“It’s great to get aboard again - when he arrived in Hong Kong, I rode him in the Derby and he has overcome some unfortunate setbacks since and returned better than ever this season,” said Hewitson.

“I worked him on Monday and was very pleased with how he went. It’s a tough race, but he comes in with a light weight and he loves the course and distance; he’s in good form.”

If those two horses are not enough, Lui also sends out prolific stayer Winning Wing, who has thrived over the 2,000m trip at Sha Tin this season.

He went back-to-back over that course and distance prior to his most recent start, where he was only denied by a length in a hat-trick bid behind the promising Numbers on his Class Two debut.

“He’s OK – he has a light weight, and I think he can perform with a light weight; it’s a big help, and he’s an honest horse,” Lui told the Jockey Club of his five-year-old, who will retain his partnership with Dylan Mo Hin-tung.