He cost himself a Group One victory by siding with California Spangle over Lucky Sweynesse in last month’s Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup (1,400m), but things shape as much simpler for Zac Purton at Sha Tin on Sunday.

He partners the superstars in their respective Champions Day lead-up contests and if overseas fixed-odds markets are anything to go by, he should be tasting success aboard both.

California Spangle is the only top liner in the Group Two Chairman’s Trophy (1,600m) and is a considered a $1.25 chance, while Lucky Sweynesse is even shorter at $1.20 despite having to overcome four-time Group One winner Wellington in the Group Two Sprint Cup (1,200m).

“They’re both good horses. Sometimes you get it right, sometimes you get it wrong. As I said before the race, it’s hard to know where Lucky Sweynesse’s ceiling is,” Purton said.

“Wellington has been around for a while. He’s had a history of problems and he’s had a history of interrupted preparations. It hasn’t been easy and Richard [Gibson] has done a great job with him, but always that time comes where there’s a changing of the guard. Lucky Sweynesse looks as if he’s got the measure of him now.”

Purton reunites with Lucky Sweynesse after watching James McDonald enjoy the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup spoils, and the speedster looms as just one of a string of strong chances among the Australian’s book as he looks to land the big haul he needs to keep Joao Moreira’s single-season record of 170 winners within reach.

Purton should be right in the thick of it aboard impressive last-start winner Red Lion, as well as debutants Red Elegance in the Class Four Homestead Handicap (1,000m) and Ka Ying Victory in the season’s first Griffin contest.

“Obviously, his trials have been nice,” Purton said of the David Hall-trained Ka Ying Victory. “The [Michael Chang Chun-wai-trained Joyful Prosperity] looks like it’s pretty good, so he’s going to be hard to beat, but we’ll see how we go.”

All being well, Purton will stick with Lucky Sweynesse (Chairman’s Sprint Prize) and California Spangle (Champions Mile) on Champions Day, and he has rounded out his feature-race book with the addition of Mitsumasa Nakauchida-trained Japanese galloper Prognosis in the QE II Cup (2,000m).

Group Two Kinko Sho (2,000m) winner Prognosis is among a handful of Japanese gallopers setting their sights on leading local hope Romantic Warrior on April 30, and Purton will get an up-close look at the opposition when he trials Romantic Warrior at Sha Tin on Tuesday.

But while he will be trying to bring Danny Shum Chap-shing’s star undone in the QE II Cup, Purton confirmed the pair will join forces for next month’s Group One Champions & Chater Cup (2,400m).

“It’s hard with Romantic Warrior because Danny ran him first up over 2,000m [in the Jockey Club Cup], which was a great training effort to get him to win that race, and he was so good second up when he smashed a good-quality field in good time by a big space [in the Hong Kong Cup],” Purton said.

“But it appears as if he’s just been a little bit flat since, so whether that big performance took a bit out of him and he’s just need a little bit of time to recover, I’m not sure. If he finds that form again, of course he’s going to be very hard to beat.

“Prognosis is lightly raced. He’s had a history of injuries, but his last win, from what I can tell, looked like it was fairly good. He does settle back – he doesn’t have any early speed – so that’s a concern because they haven’t been going that hard in these races.

“But he’s on the way up and he’s trained by a good trainer, who wouldn’t be bringing him here if he didn’t think he was a winning chance.”