April 23rd 2026
The international stars stepped out for their final serious pieces of work on Thursday morning ahead of FWD Champions Day, with several of the headline acts giving a timely reminder of their class at Sha Tin.
Japanese sprint hope Satono Reve was one of those to catch the eye, working strongly on the course proper in his final major tune-up before Sunday’s assignment. There was a minor mishap as he went past the winning post, losing a shoe in the process, but his work itself was sharp and added to the sense that the overseas raiders have arrived ready to make their presence felt.
Another Japanese runner was Strauss who had the services of Joao Moreira in the saddle as we was allowed to stroll out on the turf course. The recent Abu Dhabi Gold Cup winner looked fit and seemed to recover well after his workout.
Local superstar Romantic Warrior was one of the early workers, on the track shortly after the sun came up, and trainer Danny Shum later struck a confident tone when speaking with Andrew Le Jeune at the morning press conference.
Asked whether it had been a perfect build-up to match his horse’s perfect season so far, Shum was positive in his assessment.
“Yeah, he galloped really well. Every time Hugh (Bowman) rides, he really, really tries. He galloped the horse for me and two trials, and he always gave me very, very positive reports.”
Romantic Warrior heads into the FWD QEII Cup looking for his fourth win in the race with enormous local support, but Shum knows the challenge is a deep one this year, with quality visitors joining the home team in what shapes as one of the strongest renewals in recent memory.
“I think in the last 15 or 20 years, this is the the strongest QE2 probably in Hong Kong,” Shum said. “We are very happy so many good horses to come. It’s going to be good fun. He’s the horse I cannot tell you, but I love him, and he loves me too.”
There was also plenty of focus on sprinting sensation Ka Ying Rising, who continues to build a formidable reputation with every run. Trainer David Hayes gave media a glowing report on the star sprinter’s preparation, describing a horse who has done everything right throughout the campaign.
“Just hasn’t put a foot wrong,” Hayes said. “Probably since the press conference in the Everest, it’s gone very smooth… He is trainer proof.”
When asked if there had been any issues at all with the horse this season, Hayes made it clear Ka Ying Rising has been the ultimate stable star.
“He always pulls up fine, he’s good in the mornings, he’s very straightforward, he’s never given any problems at all,” Hayes said. “He’s trained aggressively. His weight last season, he weighed probably 15, 20 pounds lighter. And this season, he’s consistently held ever since the Everest, the 1150. I think he’ll be around that when he’s weighed today, if not, he’ll be very close. So he really hasn’t given us a headache. He’s very straightforward.”
Champion jockey Zac Purton echoed that confidence when he discussed Ka Ying Rising’s condition after partnering him in his recent work. Purton said the gelding had come through his latest run in terrific order and looked primed to produce again on Sunday.
“He’s been really good,” Purton said. “He put up a career-best performance last start in what I thought were difficult conditions. We had a very strong headwind out of the gates and then a tailwind pushing us up the straight, so it was surprising he could run that time because the times on the day were generally slow.
“Since that run, Dave hasn’t had to do too much with him. He just walked around on the grass last week, then we fired him up and he was a little bit fresh, which was to be expected because he hadn’t done much since the race.
“I rode him the week before he went to the track and he was really on song. He skipped up the straight comfortably, extended nicely and ran a good time, especially over the last furlong.
“I jumped on him again on Tuesday on the dirt and after that hit-out he was more relaxed and back to his normal self. He pulled up very clean in the wind, as you’d expect from a very fit horse. He’s fresh, he looks good and he’s ready to go on Sunday.”
By Scott Bailey
Barrier Draw Positions
Chairman’s Sprint Prize
- Ka Ying Rising — Barrier 3
- Satono Reve — Barrier 8
- Helios Express — Barrier 6
- Fast Network — Barrier 2
- Raging Blizzard — Barrier 7
- Comanche Brave — Barrier 4
- Tomodachi Kokoroe — Barrier 1
- Beauty Waves — Barrier 5
FWD QEII Cup
- Masquerade Ball — Barrier 6
- Romantic Warrior — Barrier 5
- Royal Champion — Barrier 1
- Sosiie — Barrier 2
- Giovanni — Barrier 8
- June Take — Barrier 7
- Rubylot — Barrier 3
- Numbers — Barrier 4
FWD Champions Mile
- Jantar Mantar — Barrier 6
- Voyage Bubble — Barrier 12
- Docklands — Barrier 1
- Lucky Sweynesse — Barrier 4
- My Wish — Barrier 10
- Red Lion — Barrier 8
- Galaxy Patch — Barrier 13
- Strauss — Barrier 7
- Cap Ferrat — Barrier 14
- Invincible Ibis — Barrier 5
- Sunlight Power — Barrier 3
- Chancheng Glory — Barrier 9
- Copartner Prance — Barrier 11
- Little Paradise — Barrier 2
