HONG Kong Jockey Club chief executive officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges called last weekend’s FWD Champions Day as one of the best in a “very long period of time”, after Ka Ying Rising, the Irish-bred Red Lion, and Japan’s Tastiera took Group 1 honours at Sha Tin.

He was lauding the victories of the world’s highest-rated sprinter Ka Ying Rising in the HK$22 million Chairman’s Sprint Prize over six furlongs, Red Lion in the HK$24 million FWD Champions Mile, and Tastiera in the HK$28 million FWD QEII Cup over 10 furlongs.

Second in this race last year, Red Lion scored an upset win as an 89/1 outsider in the FWD Champions Mile by a short head over Voyage Bubble, for jockey Hugh Bowman and trainer John Size. The six-year-old son of Belardo (Lope De Vega) became the biggest-priced winner in the race’s history.

Hong Kong Jockey Club’s former chairman Ronald Arculli and his wife Johanna own Red Lion. The couple also raced their Irish-homebred River Verdon, the only winner of Hong Kong’s Triple Crown.

River Verdon, a son of Be My Native, was the first Hong Kong runner to earn prize money of HK$10 million, and the first to be invited to compete overseas, in the Grade 1 Arlington Million in 1992. He was also named Horse of the Year three times.

On Sunday at Sha Tin, Red Lion lifted his earnings to HK$34.81 million with his sixth career win on his 29th start. Size said: “He’s been so consistent over the period he’s been racing. He always does his best and always puts himself in a position to win.” Prior to the weekend Red Lion was reliable at the top-level, placing three times in Group 1 races – including twice over a mile.

The amount of Group 1 winners bred in Co Offaly is off the charts as a percentage of the numbers of foals born there, and here is another. Red Lion joins the US Grade 1 mile winner Gold Phoenix as the second winner at the highest level for Bearstone Stud’s Belardo. Bred by Patrick Harney at Ballybeg Stud and pre-trained by him, the gelding is listed as a private €7,000 sale during Covid to Athnid Stud at the Tattersalls Ireland Flat Breeding Stock Sale as a yearling, but he was later returned to Harney.

Fiach McHugh

Red Lion is the name given to the gelding after his acquisition from Ireland, where he raced and won as Fiach McHugh. Trained by Andy Slattery, Fiach McHugh was offered at the Goffs London Sale as a three-year-old and retained at £240,000. Days later he ran a stormer to finish seventh at Royal Ascot in the Britannia Handicap, and was sold privately. His win on Sunday was his first in a blacktype race.

The highest-rated runner for his sire, Red Lion is one of 15 blacktype winners for the dual Group 1 winner Belardo, nine of whom have won at group level.

Belardo went to stud at Kildangan Stud in 2017 for €15,000, and was on the roster there for six seasons, while also shuttling. He moved to Bearstone for the 2023 season, and this year his fee is an unchanged £5,500. His first two years in England has seen him cover a total of about 50 mares.

Red Lion is the sole winner out of Crystal Idea, a daughter of Namid (Indian Ridge), who won a mile maiden at the Curragh as a three-year-old for Willie McCreery. She placed a few times that year also, but failed to build on the success and was sold to Patrick Harney for €5,000 at Goffs in February 2011. Three of her five foals – she is an intermittent breeder – are fillies and are all retained, while her only other colt was never named. Her youngest offspring is a three-year-old daughter, Sinach (Cotai Glory).

Sir Percy

It is a few generations since the last Group 1 winner in the family, and he was twice successful at that level.

Classic winner Sir Percy (Mark Of Esteem) is out of the fourth dam of Red Lion, and that was the smart racemare Percy’s Lass (Blakeney). The champion two-year-old colt in England after he won the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes, Sir Percy was runner-up in the 2000 Guineas before landing the Group 1 Derby at Epsom. He stood his entire career at Lanwades Stud.

Sir Percy was the best of five winners out of Percy’s Lass, and his full-sister Lady Karr (Mark Of Esteem) bred a Grade 1-winning Italian hurdler, and the much more talented Mikhail Glinka (Galileo). The latter was well travelled and performed with some distinction in five countries. He won a Group 2 in the UAE, the Group 3 Queen’s Vase at Royal Ascot and another Group 3 in Germany, a listed race at two in Ireland, and he was runner-up in the Group 1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud at the same age.

One of Percy’s Lass’ unraced daughters was Red Lion’s third dam, Lionne (Darshaan). Two of her six winners were stakes winners. Grace O’Malley (Refuse To Bend) was twice successful in the Group 3 Noblesse Stakes at Cork, while Jadalee (Desert Prince) showed a liking for Goodwood, winning a listed race there and finishing second in the Group 3 Gordon Stakes.

Last year, Red Lion’s dam visited Phoenix Of Spain (Lope De Vega) at the Irish National Stud and has yet to foal. Maybe there will be enough time to get her covered again.