Newnham holds narrow lead in thrilling Hong Kong trainers’ championship race
The 2025/26 Hong Kong trainers’ championship remains finely poised with just 19 meetings remaining after Mark Newnham maintained his slim advantage at Sha Tin’s all-dirt fixture on Wednesday night alongside fellow title contenders Caspar Fownes and Danny Shum.
Newnham leads the standings with 52 wins ahead of Fownes and Shum on 51, while David Hayes sits on 48 victories, Francis Lui has 45 and 13-time champion John Size remains firmly in contention with 44 wins in one of the closest title races in Hong Kong racing history.
Size struck first at Sha Tin when Meepmeep carried 128lb to victory in the Class 5 Osmanthus Handicap (1650m) under Hugh Bowman before Newnham responded with Notthesillyone, who carried 135lb to claim the second section of the Class 4 Carnation Handicap (1200m) under Luke Ferraris.
Fownes quickly matched the momentum when Sky Vino prevailed in the Class 3 Camellia Handicap (1650m) under Joao Moreira, while Shum later produced the most dominant performance of the evening as Blazing Wind stormed to a five-and-three-quarter-length victory in the Class 3 Begonia Handicap (1200m) under Zac Purton.
Newnham praised the remarkable rise of Notthesillyone after the gelding secured his fourth win of the campaign, saying: “He’s been a great contributor to the trainers’ championship, I’ll tell you, and considering last year he was a winner in Class 5, I didn’t factor him winning four races this time around but he’s kept improving.”
The Australian trainer admitted the performance exceeded expectations, saying: “I’ve underestimated him before, so I’m not saying he can’t win in Class 3 but I didn’t think he’d be able to carry the 135lb today, and he’s raced beyond my expectations, so with a light weight in Class 3, who knows?”
Newnham also acknowledged the intensity of the championship battle as the season enters its closing stages, saying: “Don’t worry, there’s a big pack chasing, so every win counts and is very important at this end of the season.”
