Sha Tin’s star-studded Sunday card [Nov 23] offered a full-scale dress rehearsal for the Hong Kong International Races on Dec 14 – and provided the perfect stage for emphatic victories for two of the world’s leading performers
Unbeaten since January 2024, world #1 racehorse Ka Ying Rising (stays at #1, +50pt) produced another brilliant display on his return to domestic duties at Sha Tin on Sunday [Nov 23] following his triumphant visit to Sydney for the Everest.
Hong Kong’s sprint superstar made mincemeat of his nine rivals in the HK$5.35m ($687,000/£524,000) BOCHK Private Banking Jockey Club Sprint, one of three G2 events on the designated trials card ahead of the Longines-sponsored HK International Races on Dec 14.
Sent off 1-20 – the smallest dividend possible on the pari-mutuel – Ka Ying Rising cruised home by 2¾ lengths to rivals who were all in receipt of five pounds. In so doing, the blistering five-year-old recorded the second-fastest time in history over 1,200 metres at Sha Tin with a time of 1m 07.33s – just outside his own track record of 1m 07.20s.
And this despite being eased down over the last 100 metres by jockey Zac Purton as he recorded his 15th consecutive win, behind only Silent Witness (17) and Golden Sixty (16) in the record books for winning streaks by a HK-based horse.
With a 50pt boost on Thoroughbred Racehorse Commentary’s exclusive Global Rankings, he extends his dominion at the top to 31 weeks since his victory in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize over the same course and distance in April.
“He just looks better all the time,” said his rider, the eight-time Hong Kong champion jockey Zac Purton (stays at #98, +25pt). “He’s mentally getting better. It’s hard to say that he’s improving or that he’s going to get better, but he’s certainly enjoying what he’s doing and handling it really well.
“It was good to see him win like that today without having to go to the bottom of him, so it’s a nice confidence-boosting win as he comes back. I’ve never seen him look so good. We were hoping he was going to do that, and it’s good for him to back up what we were thinking.”
Trainer David Hayes (#11 from #13, +48pt) added: “To the eye, I thought it was probably one of his best wins. That was as easy as I've seen him do it – maybe in this race last year, but I thought it was probably better than this one last year when he [Purton] did the kiss cam.
“It’s just a dream come true to have a horse like this, and I really want to thank my team that travelled him overseas and didn't miss a beat with him and brought him back in better condition than he left.”
Mind you, Ka Ying Rising was by no means the only star performer to leave his mark on Sunday’s action as former world #1 Romantic Warrior (re-enters at #4) looked as good as ever as he returned to action for the first time in more than seven months since his last-gasp Dubai defeat in the G2 Jockey Club Cup.
Given that rivals were headed by multiple G1 winner Voyage Bubble, on paper this was no gimme for the seven-year-old. On the track, though, Romantic Warrior made things look easy as he stormed home by an emphatic length and a half under James McDonald (stays at #2, +22pt).
He was much the best in a race he had also won in 2022 and 2024; he didn’t run in 2023, when he was busy adding to his international laurels in the Cox Plate in Australia.
“He’s a special horse – one of a kind,” said McDonald. “It takes the words out of my mouth to be fair, it’s an absolute privilege to ride him and every time he goes around there’s a huge smile on the face.”
Also due some plaudits is trainer Danny Shum (#24 from #25, +34pt). “It’s not easy to take a horse 232 days back to a Group 2 over 2000 (metres),” he said. “He’s a superstar, he’s got talent and is smart,” Shum said. “He didn’t look seven years old, even when he turns eight, he will think he’s still a baby.
“I will just keep him happy; he’s fit at the moment. If you really want me to put a figure on it, I will say he was 85 per cent. After this race, he will put on another 10 or 12 pounds.”
Also worth noting: Romantic Warrior’s final 400m time (21.73s) was faster than Ka Ying Rising clocked (22.02s) – though admittedly, the sprinter wasn’t pushed in the last 100 metres.
Romantic Warrior will now bid to complete a remarkable four-timer in the Hong Kong Cup, the region’s richest race.
There was more of a turn-up for the books in Sunday’s third G2 prep, the Jockey Club Mile, as odds-on favourite My Wish was overwhelmed after hitting the front a furlong out and could finish only fourth.
The race went to Galaxy Patch (#64 from #200 +185pt), who (with blinkers added) landed his first victory for 13 months under a masterful ride from McDonald, who delivered him late up the rails in the closing stages.
In Japan, star miler Jantar Mantar (#14 from #57, +230pt) claimed his fourth G1 success in a stakes record time of 1m31.3s as he stretched out to score by a comfortable length and three-quarters in Kyoyo’s Mile Championship.
Heavily favoured in a field featuring six G1 winners, the four-year-old has now scored at the top level at ages two, three and four. “I’m glad we were able to prove that the colt is a true champion,” said winning rider Yuga Kawada (stays at #7, +30pt), who described the horse as an “outstanding talent”.
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