Zac Purton rates Sunday’s Group One Longines Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m) favourite Lucky Sweynesse “marginally better” than Aerovelocity ahead of the former’s second attempt to join the latter on the HK$26 million race’s illustrious honour roll.

Two of Purton’s record 10 Hong Kong International Races wins have occurred in the Sprint, and he combined with Aerovelocity for both of them, in 2014 and 2016.

Purton’s connection to Aerovelocity is a deep one – during a recent interview with the Post, his wife, Nicole, was emotional while talking about the 2016 Hong Kong Sprint – so for the rider to rank Lucky Sweynesse above the retired globetrotter speaks volumes for what he thinks of the current star.

“I won’t be disrespectful to Aerovelocity because I love that horse, and he holds a special place in my heart,” Purton said. “Winning three Group Ones in three countries in one year is very hard to do. He won two Hong Kong Sprints. He was a very good horse.

“However, I think Lucky Sweynesse is just marginally better than what Aero was. But you’re comparing horses from different eras against different opponents. It’s always hard to match them up.”

The Hong Kong Sprint is the only one of the city’s Group One dashes that Lucky Sweynesse has yet to win after he was luckless behind Wellington in last season’s edition before sweeping the Hong Kong Speed Series, which features two 1,200m events and one over 1,400m.

“Last year, the Singaporean horse got to the corner and died in our face,” said Purton, referencing Lim’s Kosciuszko, which raced prominently on the fence for the first 800m but ran out of petrol in the Sha Tin home straight. “They didn’t go hard, so I was left in a position where there was nothing I could do. That happens. It’s a chance this year to try to atone.”

Purton has ridden Lucky Sweynesse in 11 of his past 12 races – the odd one out was the Group One Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup (1,400m) in March when he chose to partner the runner-up, California Spangle – so no one is better positioned to compare the form of Manfred Man Ka-leung’s speedster from last term to this term.

“I think he’s going as good as he has this season,” Purton said. “He’s taken a bit of time to get out to somewhere near his peak. He’s had genuine excuses.

“He ran first up this season on a wet track, which is a surface he doesn’t enjoy, carrying 135 pounds and giving 20 pounds away to the rest of the field. He still ran second, so I think he did a good job.

“On his second run this season, once again, he had to give, basically, 20 pounds away to the rest of the field. Victor The Winner led at really slow sectionals in front and then sprinted home in 21.4 [seconds]. It’s pretty hard to catch horses when they run home in that time, so his effort there was solid.

“Last time, in a set weights and penalties race, he was a bit better placed. Once again, they didn’t go out that fast. They sprinted home quite quickly. At this level, all horses can sprint home quite quickly, so if you’re giving a little bit of weight away and a little bit of start, it’s always going to be hard.

“However, he got the job done, not in his usual wow fashion that we were accustomed to seeing last season when he was in that purple patch of form, so to the eye, it probably didn’t look that impressive.

“But I feel like he’s improved since then. His gallop on Monday was incredible. His gallop on Thursday was really good. His coat has turned. He’s glowing. He’s starting to get those same mannerisms back that he had last season when he was reeling off all those wins. I think he might not be at his best that he was at last season, but he’s going to get somewhere near that. I think he’s well-placed in this race.”

Purton believes Sword Point in the Group One Hong Kong Cup (2,000m) and La City Blanche in the Group One Hong Kong Vase (2,400m) are out of their depth at Sha Tin’s marquee meeting.

However, Purton thinks the best is still to come from Group One Hong Kong Mile runner Beauty Eternal, the lightly raced galloper with whom the city’s six-time premiership-winning jockey continues his association.

“The first time I trialled him, I thought he had something,” Purton said. “He only started racing a bit over 12 months ago, so to come from where he was then to where he is now, his ascendancy has been quite rapid, and he’s continued to raise the bar.

“He had a very interrupted preparation last season. He was meant to run on international day, but he had a sore foot, so he missed that run. Next, he dumped me going to the gates and missed another run, which put us behind the eight ball for the Derby.

“Then we had to run him over 1,200m, 1,400m, 1,600m and 2,000m four runs in a row to get the Derby, and he came up short by a head. He can’t really run 2,000m, and his preparation was very rough.

Equine physio Simpson gives Romantic Warrior the Winx treatment

“He’s had the off-season where he’s had time to develop. I’ve always loved the horse. He’s a bit quirky. The hardest part is getting him to the gates. The pony rider has to keep his head up. You can’t let him get his head down. Otherwise, I’m off.

“His last win was really good. The race was set up to suit him, so he had to win that if he was going to be any chance in this race, and he did that.

“I feel like he has come on a little bit since then, but he has to raise the bar again now he’s up against Golden Sixty and the Japanese. They’re a completely different class of horse to what he raced last time.”