Five seasons ago, had you asked then perennial champion Douglas Whyte and his challenger Brett Prebble to critique each other's talent the interview wouldn't have lasted long, the pair famously not getting along at all.
It was the same situation two and three seasons ago when Zac Purton tried, and eventually succeeded, in toppling Whyte, with verbal barbs traded in person and through the media.
So we might have been wary when we asked reigning champion Purton and challenger Joao Moreira to explain what makes the other so good - especially as Purton is resigned to the fact he will relinquish his hard-won crown to the Brazilian superstar, who rode his 100th winner of the season on Wednesday night and leads the Australian by 29 wins coming into today's meeting at Sha Tin.
The pair have nothing but mutual respect and admiration for each other's talents
But the pair have nothing but mutual respect and admiration for each other's talents, and offered great insights into each other's strengths and riding styles on the eve of the Group One Audemars Piguet QE II Cup, where the jockeys ride two of the top chances: Moreira on Designs On Rome and Purton on Military Attack.
Ask Moreira what makes a great jockey, give him a few days to think about it and his first answer may surprise some. Balance? Tactical ability? Reflexes? Nope.
Joao Moreira, after riding Able Friend to the Chairman's Trophy. Photo: Kenneth Chan"First of all, a great jockey needs to be polite," Moreira insists, between sips of Chinese tea at the Sha Tin clubhouse. "He needs to know how to socialise with people.
"Obviously, you need the physical skills, too, but if you are shy, eventually you are going to be in a situation where you miss opportunities. If there is a ride to be taken, and you can't pick up a phone and call a trainer first, then you'll never get it."
Before Moreira came to Hong Kong, he had already heard plenty about Purton.
The brash and cocky trash-talker from Down Under was in the process of unseating 13-time champion Whyte in what seemed to be the least dignified way possible. Purton's reputation, however unwarranted and perhaps misunderstood when viewed through tabloid quotes and post-race finger-pointing antics, had preceded him.
Moreira says he has discovered a different side to Purton, whose locker is next to his in the jockeys' room.
"The first impression I had of Zac? Well, before I knew him I had heard he was cheeky, and liked to talk a lot, so I was expecting that - and he came up with a little bit of that stuff when I started here," says Moreira, who began riding full-time in Hong Kong in October 2013 after a successful career in Singapore.
"I think Zac changed when his daughter was born, but basically he is a very nice guy and whatever people say about him that is negative, it's either jealousy or because they don't know him well enough.
"Bottom line is, Zac knows know how to present himself and communicate very well to owners and trainers. And here's an example, for those that don't think he is humble - he even asks me things like, 'Joao, why do you do this? Why do you do that?' And I'll ask him the same type of questions."
So not only are they pushing each other to even greater heights competitively through their on-track exploits, they're giving each other riding tips?
"Sure, why not?" Moreira says. "We talk about other things too - family, money, whatever. He is just a normal, nice guy, but most of all, he is very competitive and wants to get better, the same as me."
So, what makes Moreira so good? Purton says it is his incredible balance that allows Moreira's trademark, aerodynamic, crouching style and provides the jockey with what Purton, and others, believe is an advantage based on weight distribution.
"I've never seen another top jockey who has been able to ride on as short a rein as he rides on, I think that is very unique," Purton says. "Most of the good jockeys throughout the world ride on a long rein and have the horses quite relaxed, but somehow he seems to be able to ride the horses on a short rein and still have them relaxed.
"He has mastered his technique and it's like the horse is running downhill for him.
"I think he puts his bodyweight over the horse's wither and therefore, from a physics standpoint, the horse seems to be able to gallop without overusing itself. I think that's the key to the way he rides."
Moreira puts this physical advantage into play tactically, Purton says, by "riding to his strengths".
"He is a very positive jockey and loves to put himself in a race and make an early move - but he can make an early move, travel wide and sustain a run, where a lot of people make the same move and their horse will be gassed at the furlong.
The brash and cocky trash-talker from Down Under was in the process of unseating 13-time champion Whyte in what seemed to be the least dignified way possible
"Of course, Joao is great at getting them out of the gates too, and a very good judge of pace. When you combine all of that, it's a recipe for success."
So, other than being well-mannered, what are Purton's strengths? According to Moreira, it's more about not having any obvious weaknesses.
"A great jockey can't just have one specific skill that he is good at - he must have many and be able to use them under pressure," he said, pointing to Purton's recent win aboard Aerovelocity in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen on a wet and deteriorating track at Chukyo as an example of "a great ride under pressure".
"That was the most amazing ride I've seen Zac produce. If you look at the standard of the race, in another country on an unfamiliar track, and given he was on the favourite and under all of that pressure to produce.
"The track was terrible and worn out, but he gave his horse the absolute best run in that race, and if you run that race again, that horse may not win. Zac's legs don't shake under pressure; it's the opposite - when the pressure is on, he goes for it."
Zac Purton has ridden three international Group One winners. Photo: Kenneth ChanSo, to the often-stated comparisons. Does Purton ride Happy Valley better? Moreira admits that might have some truth to it, not just because Purton has ridden more winners there this season. After spending his whole life riding predominantly on left-handed tracks in South America and Singapore, Moreira says his body hasn't yet adapted to turning right on Hong Kong's two racecourses.
"I still struggle, particularly at Happy Valley, where I can't keep the horses well balanced and going in a straight line in the straight," he said. "I'm not going that bad, I'm not useless there, but Zac rides it beautifully. He balances up, straightens and bang - by the time you are still turning and straightening your horse, he is gone."
Of course, riding in a straight line when he needs to is one area that Moreira has definitely improved on after a raft of suspensions ruined his title chances last season - when he missed 18 meetings due to six separate careless riding charges. This term he has missed nine meetings, and the result has been his win total climbing to record-breaking levels already.
Purton has noticed an "adjustment" by Moreira: "He is making a more concerted effort to keep them straight. I notice him looking over his shoulder quite a bit, whereas before if his horse shifted a bit, he wasn't doing that."
The prevailing opinion of the strengths and weaknesses of each rider, at least according to disgruntled punters on Twitter, is that Purton is better tactically, and stronger in a close finish.
There may be some element of truth in the first of those claims, as trainer Paul O'Sullivan said earlier this season: "Zac doesn't just have a Plan A - he has a Plan B, Plan C and Plan D. He knows where all his rivals are and he makes sure he is following the right horse into the race."
Moreira concurs: "Zac understands racing, and things happen in a race that seem so simple - he rides on that red line, and sometimes he takes a risk to get it done. But he knows when to push it, too," he says, adding that Purton's astute form study helps him off the track. "He knows which horses to chase for rides, too."
In a heads-up, heads-down battle to the line most punters would want to be on the hard-nosed Australian.
But according to both jockeys, the perception that Purton is stronger in a finish could be just that - perception, seen through an Asian lens where looking busy and a severe, almost extreme, whip action is valued higher than style and rhythm.
"In this part of the world, the more busy you are, the stronger people think you are," claims Moreira. "That's how fans see races here, but you put a jockey that looks like Zac, or any other Australian jockey for that matter, in Brazil or the United States, you know how they would look at that jockey there? They would say he is crazy, they would say, 'Why does he use the whip so many times?' It's not done.
Joao Moreira has ridden an unprecedented 101 winners this season. photo: Kenneth Chan"But I can't be a critic because sometimes I go out there and lose to them - so, it works. The way Americans view races, the jockey can't be too shaky or busy on top of a horse and moving too much, you have to have a good rhythm with the horse. When you use the whip, you hit the horse hard two or three times and then push and push. That's not how Australian riders do it, they get very busy.
"I'm not saying it's wrong or right - it's just different. Zac rides well, and has a beautiful style, but it is an Australian riding style, and if I could change my riding style I would change to his - maybe it would even suit Asia more?"
Purton agrees, but still counters with a good-natured jibe. "Joao is a very pretty rider and maybe he wants to look good for the photo instead of getting the job done," he says with a smile. "We've got slightly different styles in whip technique - he is more 'hands and heels' and pumps them a little bit more, but if I think one is lifting under the stick, I'll make sure I lift it.
I've never seen another top jockey who has been able to ride on as short a rein as he rides on, I think that is very unique
Purton on Moreira
"I believe he is a very strong rider in a finish, and if it comes down to a head-to-head finish in the last 100m you certainly know you aren't going to get it easy."
It was exactly that kind of finish in December when Moreira's mount Designs On Rome and Military Attack, with Purton aboard, duked it out down the straight in a thrilling Hong Kong Cup - with Moreira the winner.
Today another tactical battle between the riders looms again on the same two horses in the QE II Cup. Whatever the result, the two great jockeys will return to their lockers and have learnt that little bit more about one another.
http://www.scmp.com/comment/article/1776402/zac-purton-and-joao-moreira-mutual-appreciation-society
