James McDonald expects Hong Kong’s leading miler Voyage Bubble to prove hard to beat again as the superstar jockey launches a big week of international Group One assaults at Sha Tin on Sunday.

McDonald returns to Hong Kong to ride Voyage Bubble in the Group One Stewards’ Cup (1,600m) and Howdeepisyourlove in the Group One Centenary Sprint Cup (1,200m) before heading to Dubai for champion galloper Romantic Warrior’s tilt at the Group One Jebel Hatta (1,800m) on January 24.

The Kiwi rider will fly to Dubai with Romantic Warrior’s trainer, Danny Shum Chap-shing, after Sunday’s Sha Tin meeting to ride the nine-time Group One hero in trackwork leading up to his latest overseas bid.

But first, McDonald will be searching for more elite-level glory at Sha Tin with Voyage Bubble defending his Stewards’ Cup crown fresh from a strong victory in the Group One Hong Kong Mile last month.

Ricky Yiu Poon-fai’s stable star reopposes five rivals he accounted for at the Longines Hong Kong International Races (HKIR), with three-time Group One winner California Spangle and the emerging Patch Of Theta the new inclusions to the eight-horse field.

“He’s a ripping horse and he’s an absolute dude to ride,” McDonald said of Voyage Bubble.

“He’s trialled well after his great performance international week and he’ll be tough to beat again.

“Patch Of Theta is doing a good job and is rising through the ranks really quickly. Galaxy Patch is a really good horse in his own right and seems to be getting better and better. Beauty Eternal’s found a little bit more form than he had probably two months ago.

“It’s definitely no pushover, but my horse is very consistent and he’s very reliable. He never really runs a bad race.”

Voyage Bubble bids to join Always Plentiful (1984-85), Electronic Unicorn (2002-03) and Good Ba Ba (2008-09) in winning back-to-back Stewards’ Cups.

McDonald hops back aboard Howdeepisyourlove after Zac Purton guided the John Size-trained sprinter to victory in the Group Three Bauhinia Sprint Trophy (1,000m) last start.

He ran second in the Group Two Jockey Club Sprint (1,200m) in November and fifth in December’s Group One Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m), both times with McDonald on board.

“He did a really good job of reeling in a pretty good horse in Magic Control carrying a big weight,” McDonald said of Howdeepisyourlove’s last-start triumph under 135 pounds.

“The one thing about this race is it’s a small field so that’s going to suit him. He is a backmarker who needs a bit of luck.

“We are bumping into two very good horses, Ka Ying Rising and Helios Express. I expect him to run extremely well but those two have had his measure in the past and look really hard to beat again.”

McDonald’s eight other rides at Sha Tin include BMW Hong Kong Derby (2,000m) prospect Romantic Thor, who tackles the Class Two Able Friend Handicap (2,000m).

His owner, Peter Lau Pak-fai, trainer Shum and McDonald will then turn their focus to Romantic Warrior launching an audacious three-race campaign in the Middle East.

“It’s bloody exciting getting back on his back,” McDonald said of the record-breaking HK$177 million earner.

“We’ll give him a gallop on the turf on Tuesday morning, then obviously into the big dance on Friday night.

“It’s a new challenge for him but as he’s proven in the past, he’s overcome those challenges and I’m sure it will be no different this time. They’re very happy with him.”

After the Jebel Hatta, Romantic Warrior will progress to the Group One Saudi Cup (1,800m) on the Riyadh dirt and the Group One Dubai World Cup (2,000m), also on dirt, or the Group One Dubai Turf (1,800m).

With the Saudi Cup run on February 22, the night before the Group One Gold Cup (2,000m) at Sha Tin, it remains to be seen whether McDonald can fly back to Hong Kong in time to ride Voyage Bubble in the second leg of the Triple Crown.

“I’m yet to work out all the logistics of that and I’m sure there will be a way,” he said.

“Danny would probably like to get back for that meeting as well, so we’ll work through that and see what we come up with.”