Three out of five ain’t bad! Hong Kong horses climb up world rankings after dominating on home turf

Vincent Ho salutes the crowd after world #2 Golden Sixty establishes a new Hong Kong record with his ninth G1 success in the FWD Champions Mile at Sha Tin. Photo: HKJC

A stellar FWD Champions Day card at Sha Tin on Sunday [April 30] left Hong Kong in an unprecedented position with three of the top five on Thoroughbred Racing Commentary’s exclusive Global Rankings.

Former #1 Golden Sixty did not overhaul current world leader Equinox at the top, but the brilliant seven-year-old cemented his status at #2 as he completed a hat-trick in the G1 Champions Mile with a straightforward victory.

He is now joined in the top five by FWD QEII Cup winner Romantic Warrior and compatriot Lucky Sweynesse, who is rated the world’s leading sprinter after a comfortable success in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize.

Golden Sixty (stays at #2, +20pt) created yet more history on Sunday when he won his ninth G1 race – more than any other Hong Kong-trained horse, and one ahead of the estimable eight-time G1 winner Beauty Generation.

However, claims that he has now overhauled Winx as the highest prize-money earner of all time appear premature. Golden Sixty leads on current exchange rates – but current exchange rates did not prevail throughout his career, nor when Winx was writing her legend. With that in mind, his career earnings of HK$147,930,600 are not enough to claim the top spot from Australia’s mighty mare.

Using prevailing internationally agreed exchange rates and a ‘neutral’ currency – in this case, pounds sterling – then Winx’s career total was £14.56m. Golden Sixty stands at £14.27m – close, but no cigar (yet!).

Be that as it may, Golden Sixty’s career record bears the closest inspection and he further displayed his talent with a decisive victory under regular jockey Vincent Ho in the Champions Mile, in which he took command soon a couple of furlongs out.

There was never a moment’s doubt about the outcome as he scored by a length and a half over Beauty Joy. According to trainer Francis Lui, Golden Sixty’s next primary objective will be a third victory in the Hong Kong Mile at the Longines International meeting in December.

“Now we just keep a little bit longer in between races, before we could keep racing – even some of the Group 3 races – but now we just pick the Group 1 races,” Lui said.

Although the rankings can expect to be shaken up as the top performers in Europe and the US return to action, for Hong Kong to have three of the top five remains a hugely significant achievement for the territory.

Romantic Warrior (#4 from #7, +133pt) put his rivals to the sword in the main event of the day at Sha Tin, the HK$25m ($3.18m/£2.56m) FWD QEII Cup. Defending his crown from 12 months previously, the odds-on favourite scored by two lengths from Japanese-trained Prognosis with William Haggas’s Dubai Honour (#8 from #5, -2pt) – twice a G1 winner in Australia this year – back in third on ground faster than he likes.

“How good are the Hong Kong horses, they’re flying today!” beamed the world’s #1 rider James McDonald after maintaining his 100% record on Romantic Warrior.

“He’s a world-class horse and put in a performance just like he did in December,” added the Kiwi, who stood up in his stirrups at the line to salute a crowd of 49,496.

“There wasn’t one part of the race where I thought he wasn’t right – he was always going to explode for me – and the race panned out beautifully.

“He’s a world-class horse. It took an absolute weapon [Golden Sixty] to run him down last time but he’s a great 2000m horse and I really enjoy riding him.”

Habitually formidable in the sprint ranks, Hong Kong has another star in the shape of Lucky Sweynesse (#5 from #6, +57pt). The four-year-old continued his rise to stardom when surging clear to score by 3¼ lengths. In a devastating display, the final 400 metres were clocked at 22.26s.

He’s fast, for sure – and there might even be more to come, according to winning jockey Zac Purton. “I feel like we’re going to see a better horse again next season,” said the reigning HK champion. “The sky is the limit at the moment.”

Overseas targets in Japan and Australia were mentioned for Lucky Sweynesse.

“It was a day that showed Hong Kong racing has fully come back to the world stage with the atmosphere and the performances of these champion horses,” suggested Hong Kong Jockey Club chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges.

“This is really a global event and one which has improved the reputation of Hong Kong racing, especially after Covid,” he went on.

“Humbly, I would submit, Lucky Sweynesse is the best sprinter in the world and one of the best sprinters ever in Hong Kong. Golden Sixty is something every racing jurisdiction dreams of because one has not to forget we have only 1,250 horses and with a horse like Golden Sixty breaking all the records and history, he really is a hero in Hong Kong and globally.

“Romantic Warrior is one of the best horses in the world and especially over 2000m he is a dominant force, especially the way he accelerated.”

It wasn’t all about Hong Kong, however. Justin Palace (#7 from #24, +214pt jumped into the top ten with his maiden G1 victory in the Tenno Sho (Spring) at Kyoto racecourse, while the versatile Iresine is up to #29 (from #85, +176pt) when flooring the likes of Simca Mille, Bay Bridge and Vadeni in the G1 Prix Ganay at Paris Longchamp.