FWD Champions Day review and reaction from Hong Kong

A little after 2pm on a cloudy, humid Sha Tin Sunday and the pre-race FWD Champions Day script is simple.

The unstoppable force that is KA YING RISING will cement his status as the best sprinter on the planet in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize.

Homegrown hero VOYAGE BUBBLE and Aussie warrior MR BRIGHTSIDE will duel hard for the Champions Mile.

And sole Euro raider GOLIATH and his colourful connections will take on the might of Japan in a wide-open QEII Cup.

Three hours later act one has gone to plan, act two has produced a dramatic plot twist and act three has provided both triumph and sadness for the Japanese party.

Come on up for the Rising as sprint star shines again

There’s something priceless in the sight of a star athlete – a Federer, Lara, Bolt or Els - unleashing awesome power with little apparent effort.

Ka Ying Rising isn’t one of those sprinters who goes about his business using brazen muscle but, a little like Dayjur back in the day, he lengthens and lowers just as high-class rivals feel the pinch and flows to the line with an elegance that is wondrous to behold.

“What can you say?” was Zac Purton’s awed response on being greeted by HKJC interviewer Nick Child, who looked after an extraterrestrial of his own in a previous life as the groom to Kauto Star.

And, while aware of the need to avoid prisoner of the moment reactions, it’s safe to say a few things...

Everest the next peak to conquer

Ka Ying Rising has now won twelve in a row – including four G1s – and is plainly still getting better as he approaches the end of his second season.

He has broken Sha Tin’s historic 1200m track record twice this season and looks set to be the first horse to dip below 67s at some point once all the stars align.

And, terrifyingly for potential rivals at home and abroad, he is beating high-class horses like Japanese ace Satono Reve in a manner that suggests the best is still to come.

David Hayes has compared the horse who is lighting up the autumn of his career to the mighty Black Caviar, while conceding that he “needs to dominate for another two years and do it on the international stage.”

The Everest at Randwick on October 18 provides the perfect chance to tick that global box, and my moles suggest Satono Reve’s connections might be needing their morning suits in June.

But in the meantime, there is one important thing left to say.

It’s probably the right time to stop calling HK’s latest superstar the world’s best sprinter. It’s early in the year but, after this savage show of strength, it feels like he might just be the world’s best horse.

All down to the Red Lion

RED LION is a long way removed from that title but he finished second on a wet track in last year’s Champions Mile, with a certain Voyage Bubble and Golden Sixty filling the frame.

Seven consecutive defeats this season saw him sent off at 89/1 this time but he refused to be denied as Voyage Bubble came calling and held on by a short head.

Murmurs from the crowd sounded as soon as an Inquiry and Objection was announced, followed by a roar when the head-on replay was shown.

It seems safe to assume the close friendship between Hughie Bowman and James McDonald was set aside as the Commissars studied the replay in the Inquiry Room.

A slight nudge close home gave the Bubble legions hope but the result was allowed to stand, much to the delight of 86-year-old owner Ronnie Arculli, who was instrumental in establishing the FWD sponsorship of HK racing’s second biggest day.

Tastiera right on key in QEII

Now to a bittersweet QEII Cup that saw a Derby winner excel, an Oaks heroine in deep strife on the Sha Tin turf and a King George winner out with the washing.

TASTIERA had been threatening to win another G1 since his narrow Japanese Derby win in 2023 and had too many guns for fellow countryman Prognosis, who was finishing second for the third year running.

The sporting decision to send GOLIATH to HK for his first run of the season never looked like paying off as he faded into ninth under Christophe Soumillon.

And the team who prepared LIBERTY ISLAND to win the Japanese fillies’ Triple Crown two years ago were left distraught after the five-year-old globetrotter broke down badly halfway up the home straight.

Yuga Kawada stayed with his filly until the end and kept his goggles down as he walked back into the weighing room.

There wasn’t much he could say after losing one of his closest allies. After all, when the worst happens, what can you say?

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