Romantic Warrior made a triumphant return to racing at Sha Tin on Sunday as he sauntered to an emphatic victory in the HK$5.35 million (approx. £525,000) G2 BOCHK Jockey Club Cup for jockey James McDonald and trainer Danny Shum.
Resuming after 232 days between races after surgery to his left fore fetlock, Romantic Warrior – Hong Kong, China’s global champion – lifted his world record earnings to HK$217.7 million (approx. £21.4m) as the Hong Kong International Sale graduate became the first horse to win a third BOCHK Jockey Club Cup after victories in 2022 and 2024.
“He’s so special. 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. He’s really touching, that horse,” McDonald said.
"Him (Danny) and his team just gloat over him, he’s a special horse – one of a kind. His training performance is incredible. To have him looking how he did, feeling how he did and performing how he did was a real testament to his training ability."
Stepping smoothly from barrier two as 2/5 favourite, Romantic Warrior settled fourth behind leading duo Voyage Bubble and Sword Point, while Straight Arron sat third. Turning for home, McDonald popped his mount the question, circling wide, before letting loose in the straight with an unmatched burst of speed.
The Acclamation gelding’s winning time was 2m 03.72s, while the official margin was an eased down one and a half lengths ahead of Voyage Bubble, who held second, while Ka Ying Generation rolled into third place.
Shum said: “I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my team, especially my stable assistant and his home rider. They put a lot of effort into him and, of course, my stable vet Lawrence Chan – he’s also helped him a lot.
“Before the race I talked to James and we all understood that the pace would be slow, and then we said the most important thing is to relax the horse. He had a good turn of foot, we were not worried about the pace being slow.”
Romantic Warrior will next target a record-extending fourth consecutive HK$40 million (approx. £3.9m) G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (1m2f/2000m) success at 14 December’s HK$130 million LONGINES Hong Kong International Races.
“It’s not easy to take a horse 232 days back to a Group 2 over 2000 (metres). 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.
“I’d like to thank Hugh Bowman, of course, he trials the horse a lot and teaches the horse to relax. He also helps the team and the stable a lot.”
Ka Ying Rising imperious in Jockey Club Sprint
Romantic Warrior’s performance was backed up by the clock, with his final 400m time (21.73s) faster than what Ka Ying Rising clocked (22.02s) on his way to victory in the HK$5.35 million (approx. £525,000) G2 BOCHK Private Banking Jockey Club Sprint (6f/1200m) earlier on the card.
Ka Ying Rising put in a scintillating display to cruise home by an eased-down two-and-three-quarter lengths under Zac Purton to extend his winning streak to 15 races, and back up his win in the AU$20 million The Everest at Randwick last month.
After the race, Purton said: “He’s come back [from Australia] in great order, his barrier trial told us that. Just his demeanour at the track, and the way he looks – I’ve never seen him look so good.
“That was probably half a step too slow for him. I know we’ve run nearly track record time, but he was on his tippy toes behind wanting to go half a stride quicker. That’s the beauty with this horse – the faster they go, the better he is."
Galaxy Patch springs a surprise under McDonald
There was an upset in the G2 HK$5.35 million (approx. £525,000) G2 BOCHK Private Wealth Jockey Club Mile (1600m), with favourite My Wish having to settle for fourth as Galaxy Patch was given an exhibition ride by James McDonald, finishing late down the inside rail to return to winning ways.
Hollie Doyle gave the Ricky Yiu-trained Sunlight Power a fine ride also, closing down the outside to finish a close second.
Hong Kong racing continues at Happy Valley on Wednesday.
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