If Jamie Richards is after a reason to be optimistic, then he need look no further than David Hayes.

Last week wasn’t the best of weeks for Richards, with five horses leaving his stable – including midweek runner-up Embraces – and favourite Courier Aladdin among his beaten runners.

On Sunday, Bravehearts went and won his first start for Mark Newnham after being taken off Richards last term, something Australian Group Three winner Magic Control did for Cody Mo Wai-kit earlier in the season.

With only one win to his name through 13 meetings, it would be fair to say things could be going better for the Kiwi handler.

But he’s far from the first trainer in Hong Kong faced with the tricky task of stemming a flow of gallopers from his barn and it’s certainly not all doom and gloom.

He’s still got 59 horses at his disposal, he’s proven he’s an elite trainer and he only has to look at how quickly Hayes turned things around to see what is possible.

It’s less than two years since Hayes was Hong Kong’s “unlucky” handler in a place where owners love a pile on, superstition often drives decisions and feng shui plays a big role.

Now, he’s top of the trainers’ championship with 14 winners and his stable star, Ka Ying Rising, is on track to become the best sprinter in the world, if he’s not already.

“I lost 40 horses and that’s pretty hard to take. But luckily, the ones that stayed and some of the new ones coming in are very good,” said Hayes after landing a treble thanks to wins from Youth Power, Master Mastermind and Ka Ying Rising at Sha Tin on Sunday.

Part of the challenge for trainers in Hong Kong is that owners take horses away with no opportunity for dialogue – they’re there one day, gone the next as owners go in search of a change of luck under a new handler.

One of Hayes’ great traits is his eternal optimism and he admits his ability to stay as positive as possible was crucial.

He also shifted his focus away from expensive Private Purchases (gallopers who raced elsewhere before coming to Hong Kong) like Straight Arron, who was taken off Hayes after three starts and went onto become a Group Two winner for Caspar Fownes, and went about building a stable around Private Purchase Griffins (previously unraced horses).

It’s a strategy that’s paid dividends remarkably quickly, with Ka Ying Rising one of a string of four-year-old PPGs leading the way for Hayes.

Rubylot is one of the main fancies for January’s Classic Mile after an impressive first-up win, while Master Mastermind and Chateauneuf look poised to be solid contributors throughout the season after showing strong early form.

Richards has 16 unraced PPGs of his own and while it would be a tad optimistic to hope there is a Ka Ying Rising among them, there’s certainly more than enough reason to be confident he can produce the winners required to turn the tide.

Chadwick cleared for dirt fiesta

Speaking of lucky, Matthew Chadwick has been cleared to ride at Wednesday night’s Sha Tin all-weather meeting despite a nasty fall at Sha Tin on Sunday.

While there were initial suggestions that Chadwick had injured his shoulder when falling from Hong Kong debutant Times Table in Sunday’s finale, the jockey confirmed he’s come out of the incident with nothing more than some general stiffness.

“I’m fine. I was lucky. All the scans came back fine, just a bit stiff from the impact,” Chadwick said. “I intend to trial one tomorrow and then I’ll get myself ready for Wednesday.”

Chadwick has seven rides on Wednesday night, including last-start winner Alpha One.