Litterateur streaks into Pottinger Handicap

The streaking Litterateur tries for his third straight win when he faces nine foes in the featured Pottinger Handicap, race 7 of eight on Wednesday night at Happy Valley in Hong Kong.

A third win in a row is a big ask for Litterateur, a 6-year-old Irish-bred gelding trained by Richard Gibson. The Pottinger, contested at 1650 meters, one lap around the Happy Valley course, is a Class 2 handicap for horses rated 80-100. Not only is Litterateur top-rated at 91 and correspondingly the 133-pound highweight, he is up in class from a Class 3 win in his most recent start.

In that race, also over 1650 meters at Happy Valley, Litterateur rallied into a slow pace and won off by more than two lengths, also under 133-pound top weight. That performance came on the heels of a half-length win, a second, and a third at the same level, and no doubt Litterateur has hit top form. Wednesday, Neil Callan replaces Nash Rawiller in the saddle, and Litterateur does not seem the most straightforward ride. He races with an unusual head carriage, keeping himself low to the ground, and competes in thick cheek pieces, a hood, and a cross noseband. Gibson clearly has the gelding figured out, but the question is how long he can hold his peak.

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While Litterateur is up eight points in the ratings, Winning Faith is up nine, from 74 to 83, following a powerful Class 3 course-and-distance win March 7. That victory was the third in a row for Winning Faith, a streak that began when trainer Danny Shum began racing Winning Faith in a hood. Just a 4-year-old, Winning Faith responded to increased weights by raising his game in each of his last two starts, and the ease with which he mowed down his Class 3 rivals last time suggests he is ready to handle stronger competition Wednesday.

Infinity Endeavor also is up in class off a win, and trainer John Size stretches this 4-year-old Fastnet Rock gelding out from Sha Tin Sprints to a Happy Valley middle distance. Infinity Endeavor isn’t certain to stay, but he did hold decent for second and third in pair of Sha Tin Class 3 1600-meter races at the end of last season.

Pikachu, second-highest rated at 88, has faced considerably stronger opposition in his recent Class 1 runs but just isn’t in great form at the moment. Imperial Gallantry, rated 87, can’t be totally dismissed. Relatively exposed at age 6 and more proven in the Class 3 ranks, Imperial Gallantry’s first try at this Class 2 level last out came on the dirt track at Sha Tin, and he appeared to harbor no particular fondness for the surface. Circuit Glory, a John Moore-trained 4-year-old, tried Happy Valley for the first time in his career on March 14 and ran on from the back of a Class 3 field to nab third. He struggled in Sha Tin Class 2's as a Hong Kong newcomer earlier this season, but could be ready to win now.

Post time for the Wednesday feature, worth a robust $237,000 US, is 10:15 a.m. Eastern. Live video and wagering is available at DRF Bets.