With first the Yasuda Kinen in Japan and now The Everest in Australia off this year’s agenda, Manfred Man Ka-leung wants Lucky Sweynesse to continue his domestic domination by giving several of Hong Kong’s best sprinters lumps of weight and a beating in Sunday’s Group Three Sha Tin Vase (1,200m).

“I didn’t think it was a good idea,” Man said about seeking a slot in The Everest at Randwick in Sydney on October 14, which could be worth even more than the A$15 million (HK$77 million) it was last year.

“Not enough time before December racing,” added Man, whose primary target for Lucky Sweynesse between now and the end of 2023 is the Group One Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m) at Sha Tin. The international day event boasts a boosted HK$24 million in prize money.

Sha Tin Vase success for Lucky Sweynesse would lift his career earnings above HK$50 million and see him equal two-time Horse of the Year Beauty Generation’s feat of winning eight races in a Hong Kong season.

Man is very confident Lucky Sweynesse will carry 135 pounds to victory – “nothing to worry about” was his concise reply to a question about the four-year-old speedster’s impost – but the sprint star’s regular jockey, Zac Purton, is not so bullish, even though he loved what his mount produced to win the Group One Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1,200m) five weeks ago.

“It was probably his best performance,” said Purton of Lucky Sweynesse’s three-and-a-quarter-length defeat of Courier Wonder. “He was very dominant in that race. He got himself into the right spot. He took care of the field pretty comfortably.

“Manfred said it took him a couple of days to get over that run. Here we are, a little later in the season when the weather is hotter. He has to give away a lot of weight to some quite promising horses.

“It’s not going to be easy. There’s no doubt about that. There’s a bit of speed, so he should get the right run, and he’s a big horse. He can carry the weight. It’s whether he can give away the weight.

“It’s a big ask for him at the end of a long season. He’s had a terrific season. He hasn’t done anything wrong. The only time he’s been beaten, really, is when he’s been unlucky. He’s turned up every time.”

Purton was aboard Victor The Winner for the second and third legs of his hat-trick. He respects the chances of Danny Shum Chap-shing’s youngster, who lugs 115 pounds, including new rider Karis Teetan.

“He’s run very fast times in some of his races, and he’s drawn the perfect gate,” said Purton of Victor The Winner, who begins from the inside barrier.

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“Karis is very good on horses who like to lead and use their speed. He’s got good hands, he’s got good balance, and his horse gets in with no weight.”

Purton’s full book of 10 rides also includes Beauty Eternal in the Group Three Lion Rock Trophy (1,600m), which the Australian jockey believes is the John Size-trained four-year-old galloper’s ideal trip.

“He only just got there over 1,400m two starts ago,” Purton said. “Last start [when second], also over 1,400m, he was in an awkward position and not handling the track around the circle. Once he got into the straight, where the ground was better, his class got him through. But I think 1,600m suits him more than 1,400m does.”