Andrea Atzeni needs just one winner from his nine rides on Saturday at Sha Tin to record his best ever season in Hong Kong.
The British Classic-winning rider’s career has gone from strength-to-strength since relocating to Hong Kong in 2023, riding 48 winners in his first full season in 2023/24, before bettering that when riding 58 winners in the 2024/25 season.
Atzeni currently lies second on 58 wins in this season’s jockeys’ championship, behind eight-time Champion Jockey Zac Purton, and looks set to again improve on his personal best winners’ tally with six meetings of the season remaining.
The 35-year-old Italian has amassed prize money of HK$91,962,750 (approx. £8.9m) this season, significantly more than his best haul of prize money when riding in the UK of £3.5m, which came in 2016 when Atzeni rode 116 winners, including successes aboard Postponed in the Juddmonte International and Coronation Cup.
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Superb form
Atzeni said: “I’m pleased with my season so far. I’ve had a very good second half of the season with a couple of four-timers and a couple of trebles, rode a Group winner and I was the most-winning jockey in March with 14 wins.
“I’m on 58 winners, which is not a bad number, and I’ve still got a few meetings left, so hopefully I can get to 60.
“I’d say the highlight of the season so far is riding a couple of four-timers and having a Group 3 win with Stellar Express for John Size.”
A superb spell of form in March saw Atzeni ride 14 winners, including four-timers at both Sha Tin and Happy Valley.
In January, Atzeni also added a third Group 3 to his Hong Kong CV with a win aboard the John Size-trained Stellar Express in the Bauhinia Trophy, joining two previous Group 3 wins in 2024 aboard Nimble Nimbus and Taj Dragon.
Racing in Hong Kong continues with an 11-race card from Sha Tin on Saturday, July 27.
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