Luke Ferraris is gathering momentum heading into the new year and hopes a pair of last-start winners deliver belated birthday gifts at Happy Valley on Friday night.

Ferraris, who turned 22 on Wednesday, heads to the city circuit with a solid book of seven rides, the highlights of which are Tourbillon Prince in the Class Three Pak Tam Au Handicap (1,650m) and Togepi in the first section of the Class Four Pat Sin Leng Handicap (1,200m).

Aiming to record at least one win at a third consecutive meeting, Ferraris suspects Benno Yung Tin-pang-trained import Tourbillon Prince is ready to bag a second course-and-distance victory this month.

“He looks like a nice horse, and his win last time was smart,” Ferraris said. “If we can get a smooth enough run in transit, there’s no reason he can’t reproduce that win.”

Triumphant in two of his 11 Australian appearances, Tourbillon Prince notched his first Hong Kong win on December 13 when Zac Purton steered him to victory in the Class Three Kowloon Bay Handicap (1,650m).

Purton, who gave up the ride on Tourbillon Prince in Friday night’s contest to stick with Francis Lui Kin-wai-prepared topweight Silver Sonic, was not for catching aboard the five-year-old galloper after assuming the lead in the opening stages.

With five of Ferraris’ 15 wins this season coming from bold front-running rides, the South African jockey hopes to employ similar enterprising tactics when he hops aboard Tourbillon Prince for the first time.

“Going forward worked in his last race,” Ferraris said. “It looked like he had good early speed, so if he leaves the gates well and can get an easy lead, we would love it.”

Tourbillon Prince and Ferraris face a host of challengers, including Silver Sonic and Quantum Patch, who were first and second in the third leg of the recent International Jockeys’ Championship (IJC), respectively.

Ferraris narrowly missed a spot in this year’s IJC but has made his presence felt with 15 victories through the first 31 meetings of the campaign. Cementing himself in the top half of the championship, the youngest rider in Hong Kong’s jockey ranks is on track to surpass his season-best haul of 35 wins.

“It’s going well. I’m trying to get the quality of rides up a bit more, but it’s been going well so far,” Ferraris said.

A galloper who has already contributed to Ferraris’ tally of victories this term is Togepi, and Cody Mo Wai-kit’s son of Eurozone will attempt to snare back-to-back wins at Happy Valley on Friday night.

Ferraris delivered Togepi to pinpoint perfection from the rear of the field to beat King Eccellente by a short head last time. The sprinter must carry 135 pounds as he hunts his third success in 16 starts.

“He’s a small horse, and he’s got a big weight on his back, which may make it a bit difficult,” Ferraris said. “It was a good win last time, and he picked himself up really well. We need to try and find the right horse to pull us through, and hopefully, it’s not too much weight for him.”