KA YING RISING’s performance to win the G1 The Everest (1200m) at Royal Randwick today (18 October) was absolutely phenomenal, confirming his status as a global champion and reinforcing Hong Kong, China’s standing as an international horseracing leader.
With KA YING RISING’s stunning success for Mr Leung Shek Kong, David Hayes and Zac Purton in becoming the first international winner of The Everest – the world’s richest turf race with a prizemoney of approx. HK$101 million – Hong Kong, China has another global equine champion to celebrate and cherish.
ROMANTIC WARRIOR has been the trailblazer for Hong Kong, China with his amazing Group 1 feats in Australia, Japan and the United Arab Emirates and it is wonderful that KA YING RISING has now also proven himself on the international stage.
It is remarkable to think that Hong Kong, China has achieved these elite performances from a thoroughbred population of only 1,275 horses.
KA YING RISING’s performance was extremely important when you consider how many people in Hong Kong were watching this race and he is now the people’s horse. I am very happy that KA YING RISING performed at his best and I congratulate the entire team behind him, especially Mr Leung, David and Zac.
The atmosphere at Royal Randwick for The Everest was amazing with a fascinating demographic, especially a lot of young attendees, and it shows horseracing – with stars like KA YING RISING – can produce incredible entertainment with the best global horses, trainers and jockeys.
Zac showed today again why he is one of the best jockeys in the world with a great ride. He is extremely professional, he is very competitive and he can be edgy but most great sportsman have a similar disposition.
We missed David when he went back to Australia after his first training stint in Hong Kong, China and when he came back, he had to adjust because the competition was much better than he faced previously but with his handling of KA YING RISING that he has shown that he is a truly global top-class trainer.
KA YING RISING will get a sensational reception when he returns to Sha Tin because he is a global champion and I look forward to watching him compete in the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) at Sha Tin on 14 December as part of the LONGINES Hong Kong International Races.
Our World Pool coverage continues from Gavea Racecourse in Rio de Janiero, Brazil early on Sunday morning (19 October) with a Group 1 double-header. The ground is expected to be soft after recent rain.
The G1 Gran Premio Jockey Club de Sao Paulo is the second leg of the Paulista Crown and is carded as S4-1 and run over 2000m at 6.20am.
STAR DO IGUASSU (Joao Moreira) claimed the first leg of the series over 1600m – the Grande Premio Ipiranga – and, although awkwardly drawn in gate nine, is a win and place chance.
His main opposition is likely to come from ODERICH (Wilkley Xavier), ZERO ZERO SETE (Joao Victor), ZUCCA BABY (Vagner Borges), OAK CHRONNOS (Altair Domingos) and ELTON (Henderson Fernandes).
The G1 Gran Premio Latinoamericano is carded as S4-2 and is run over 2000m at 7am.
The main chances have all drawn well. ETHEREUM (Jose A da Silva) will start from gate seven and is proven at this course and distance and handles rain-affected ground. She is a win and place chance.
VUNDU (Martin Valle) jumps from barrier six and, with his front-running style, is the hardest to beat as he bids for his ninth win in only 11 starts.
OBATAYE (Joao Moreira), SEIQUEVOUTEAMAR (Dylan Machado), GRACIE (Joao Victor) and NEED YOU TONIGHT (Maximiliano Aserito) all have place chances.
The G1 Shuka Sho is the third leg of Japan’s Triple Tiara and is carded as S5-1 and will be run over 2000m at Kyoto Racecourse at 2.40pm.
G1 Japanese Oaks (2400m) winner KAMUNYAK (Yuga Kawada) is chasing her fourth victory in a row and has been Japan’s dominant three-year-old filly so far. She has drawn poorly in gate 17, but has the class to overcome the challenge as a win and place chance.
EMBROIDERY (Christophe Lemaire) won the G1 Oka Sho (1000 Guineas, 1600m) – the first leg of the Triple Tiara – but disappointed as favourite when ninth behind KAMUNYAK in the Oaks. She can rebound from that performance as a place chance.
MA PUCE (Takeshi Yokoyama), JOCELYN (Mirai Iwata) and THERESA (Kohei Matsuyama) are also place hopes.
At Sha Tin on Sunday (19 October), the G2 Sha Tin Trophy is run over 1600m at 4.10pm for prizemoney of HK$5.35 million. The race has drawn a very good field with several Group 1 winners as well as the stars of last season’s four-year-old generation.
The speed will be good with VICTOR THE WINNER (Angus Chung) going forward from his wide draw and SWORD POINT (David Probert) likely to lead. BEAUTY ETERNAL (Matthew Chadwick) and COPARTNER PRANCE (Keagan de Melo) should be prominent early.
MY WISH (Alexis Badel) could not have been more impressive when resuming with a brilliant win in the G3 Celebration Cup Handicap (1400m) on 28 September. MY WISH carries only 115lb and is drawn awkwardly in gate 11 but he has the tactical speed for Alexis to get him into a striking position one off the fence and he is my win and place selection.
VOYAGE BUBBLE (Matthew Poon) is one of the best milers in the world but faces an enormous challenge to win the race giving significant weight to a top-class field. He ended last season with a dominant win under James McDonald in the G1 Champions and Chater Cup over 2400m, defeating RUBYLOT and CAP FERRAT. The win delivered him the Triple Crown becoming just the second horse in history to achieve the feat. VOYAGE BUBBLE has looked good in two trials heading into this race and if Matthew gets VOYAGE BUBBLE in a good spot and in a good rhythm in running, he is a winning chance.
GALAXY PATCH (Jerry Chau) won this race last year from VOYAGE BUBBLE and CHANCHENG GLORY to record a stunning victory. GALAXY PATCH has a very good record when resuming and is a place chance.
Several other runners are capable of being placed, including COPARTNER PRANCE and HAPPY TOGETHER (Karis Teetan), while G1 FWD Champions Mile winner RED LION (Richard Kingscote) and BEAUTY JOY (Derek Leung), winner of the G3 Premier Plate two starts ago, are also both capable of figuring in the finish.
BMW Hong Kong Derby winner CAP FERRAT (Keith Yeung) is an interesting runner resuming. Francis Lui is targeting the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile in December with CAP FERRAT and he can run well first-up.
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