Within the past six weeks or so, it has been a case of musical chairs at the top of the trainers’ championship. There have been five different trainers chopping and changing positions after either collecting winning trebles, four-timers, or in the case of Mark Newnham, a five-timer at Happy Valley a fortnight ago. The main protagonists are current leader Mark Newnham on 45 wins, Caspar Fownes on 43, Danny Shum with 41 and David Hayes and Francis Lui who are level on 40 wins apiece. They are all worth keeping a close eye on in their present form.
Fownes holds his lofty position near the top of the table thanks to sending out 30 of his 43 winners at his favourite track Happy Valley. That said, it would be unfair to call him a one-trick pony, and he has already collected three wins on the all-weather surface at Sha Tin.