Riding in peak form, Karis Teetan slotted a quartet at Sha Tin on Saturday (7 May) to continue a stunning recent run as Joao Moreira edged clear from Zac Purton in the pair’s gripping battle for the 2021/22 Hong Kong jockeys’ title.

Teetan’s four-timer and the treble which pushed Moreira to a 114-109 championship lead over Purton came with Tony Cruz and John Size locked on 1,399 career Hong Kong wins – a figure previously traversed only by all-time record-holder John Moore (1,735).

Size, who had a double on Saturday to move to 69 wins for the season, and Cruz, who has 54 victories for the term, will renew the race for the 1,400 milestone at Happy Valley on Wednesday night (11 May).

Teetan, who savoured G1 FWD QEII Cup (2000m) and BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) victories on Romantic Warrior this season, was elated after his haul aboard Super Fortune for Cruz, Good Luck Friend for Ricky Yiu and Frankie Lor’s Looking Cool and Dragon Fortune.

“It’s nice to ride a few winners and things are going well,” said Teetan, who also had a double at last Wednesday’s (4 May) Sha Tin fixture. “Without the support, it’s not easy. So, thank you to all the trainers and owners for their support. I’m very happy with the way things are going.”

The Mauritian now has 63 wins for the season.

Lor narrowly holds sway in the trainers’ standings – 70-69 – after matching his former mentor’s feat of notching a double.

Size, the 11-time championship winner in Hong Kong, remains strongly in contention after victories by Erimo and Power Koepp – both were ridden by Moreira.

“We've had a couple of winners today, which is good,” Size said before addressing the title race. “I've never been confident because it's so close so I'll keep trying and see what happens.”

Apart from his double for Size, Moreira also scored aboard Red Elysees.

Cruz continued his push towards 1,400 with Super Fortune’s success in the Class 3 Celosia Handicap (1200m) under Teetan. A son of Zoustar, Super Fortune improved his record to three wins from nine starts.