Romantic Warrior created racing history when winning the Group 1 Hong Kong Cup for the fourth time in a row at Sha Tin on Sunday.

Bred in Ireland by the Egan family at Corduff Stud in partnership with investor T.J. Rooney, the seven-year-old by Acclamation was bought by Michael Kinane as a yearling, on behalf of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, for 300,000gns.

Trained by Danny Shum, he has now won 20 races, including 10 at Group 1 level. Those victories include unforgettable triumphs in the Cox Plate in Australia, the Yasuda Kinen in Tokyo and the Jebel Hatta Turf in Dubai. He was narrowly beaten in top races in Saudi Arabia and Dubai last spring.

With James McDonald on board as usual on Sunday, Romantic Warrior was sent off the 1/10 favourite and had the perfect passage throughout the 10-furlong race.

Joseph O'Brien's Galen made most of the running under Dylan Browne McMonagle, tracked by the favourite who challenged off the home turn. Romantic Warrior was soon pushed clear and it was left to the Japanese raider Bellagio Opera to chase him home, finishing just under two lengths behind.

Francis Graffard's Quisisana was third, a further three and a half lengths behind, and a neck in front of Galen.

“I’m very proud of Romantic Warrior and our stable team, they work really hard,” Shum said. “It’s a big relief. He always gives me a lot of happiness, not only me but my stable, owners, my family and in Hong Kong, even racing fans or non-racing fans, they all love Romantic Warrior.

“To be honest, there was a lot of pressure. He had his surgery (when a screw was inserted in his left front leg at the end of May), but he is such a good, calm, lovely horse. He’s part of my family, I love him. My son says I love Romantic Warrior more than him!

“He’s very easy to train. He doesn’t need too much work and his body weight will tell you, his appetite will tell you how fit he is.”

McDonald, however, was almost lost for words in the immediate aftermath. “He’s so special, he’s so special,” he said. “He’s just a freak. I don’t know what to say … I just love him. I love him.”

Romantic Warrior was already the only horse to have won this race three times since it was first staged in 1988, even before adding a fourth. He is likely to now be geared towards another face-off with Forever Young, who he had pushed all the way to the line in the Saudi Cup showdown earlier this year.

Shum, however, will wait for the go-ahead from the gelding’s owner, Peter Lau, before committing to plans.

“I always say, we know he’s turning eight really soon, but he doesn’t know he’s turning eight,” he said.

“This is amazing. He’s been in Australia, Japan, Dubai, second in the biggest prize money in the world in Saudi (Arabia). Also second in the Dubai Turf. He’s come back and had two wins.

“The plan is always made by the owner, Peter. He has wisdom, we all trust him. If he says, ‘Danny, go to Saudi Arabia’, I’ll go to Saudi Arabia. If he says, ‘Danny stay in Hong Kong’, I'll stay in Hong Kong. We’re a good team, I trust Peter a lot.”

Birthday winner for Fabré

In the week he celebrated his 80th birthday, Andre Fabre became the first trainer to win the Hong Kong Vase four times, as Sosie surged to success under a cool and confident Maxime Guyon.

Defending champion Giavellotto pursued Sosie all the way to the line but ultimately could not reverse the placings from October’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, in which the pair finished third and fourth.

Goliath finished third for trainer Francis Graffard and the Joseph O'Brien-trained Al Riffa was a close fourth. There was a break back to the fifth-placed Los Angeles, who had raced prominently under Ryan Moore before being outpaced in the straight.

Elisabeth Fabre has long been an integral part of her husband’s training empire and her concise summary of Sosie’s performance placed his victory in the wider context of a year which has brought the Sea The Stars colt three Group 1 wins over a variety of distances.

“Everything went perfectly,” Madame Fabre said. “The race unfolded perfectly, he had a great trip and Maxime knows his horse very well, while Sosie had trust in him when he asked him for his effort.

“He is a very good horse with a wonderful mind and a lot of natural energy. He is magnificent to look at and he will stay in training next year.”

“Everything went very smoothly,” Guyon said, who added to wins in the Vase aboard Flintshire (2014) and Junko (2023).

“I followed Los Angeles for three-quarters of the race, but halfway round the home turn, Ryan’s horse began to falter. This horse can really sustain his run, and he is such a hard horse to pass.

“The horse has such a great temperament and he is so easy to put anywhere in a race.”

Sosie also triumphed in the Prix Ganay and the Prix d’Ispahan this year.

“He is an incredible horse,” Guyon said. “This was the first time he’d travelled across continents, and yet he’s been relaxed every morning this week, and he’s looked amazing.”

Marco Botti expressed his pride at the effort of Giavellotto, who chased Sosie hard and was three-quarters of a length down at the line.

Botti said: “As we thought beforehand, it wasn’t going to be a strong pace. Andrea said he thought the winner had first run, but he got to his girth for second and I thought it was a good effort. The winner is a proper horse, and they’re two good horses.”

Already a winner this season of the Grosser Preis von Baden, Goliath turned in arguably his best run of 2025, finishing a further length and a quarter back, while Al Riffa and Los Angeles ensured that international challengers filled the first five places.

But the plaudits mostly belong to the ageless Fabre, for whom Sosie joins Borgia (1999), Flintshire and Junko on the Hong Kong Vase roll of honour, edging the Chantilly maestro one win ahead of Aidan O’Brien.

World's best sprinter

Ka Ying Rising, the world’s best sprinter, stands on the brink of Hong Kong racing immortality after stretching his consecutive winning streak to 16 with an imperious victory in the Hong Kong Sprint.

The gelding secured his sixth Group 1 victory to match the mighty Golden Sixty’s feat of posting 16 straight wins to be now only one short of Hong Kong, China’s record of 17, held by Silent Witness, and enhanced his own record to 17 wins and two seconds from 19 starts with prize money of HK$122.5 million.

In a powerhouse display after drawing barrier one for the first time in his career, the Shamexpress gelding produced one of his best victories with another masterful ride from Zac Purton, who steered the champion into the middle of the home straight in search of the best ground.

Ka Ying Rising surged away to beat Raging Blizzard by three-and-three-quarter lengths, with Fast Network third in 1m 07.7s after being eased down by Purton over the closing 150 metres.

Purton said Ka Ying Rising’s performance was what everyone wanted to see.

“His last run showed us that it was on the cards today,” he said. “He drew the right gate, and when the barrier came out, they said, ‘What do you think?’ And I said he would win by further.

“He is just in a league of his own now. And not having to do that extra work into the first corner from a wide gate to try and get forward, probably helped him.

Purton said Ka Ying Rising travelled beautifully throughout the race, and he just made sure he gave him his chance.

Declaring Ka Ying Rising the best horse he has trained, David Hayes said he was relieved the five-year-old gelding didn’t let the stable or the public’s expectations down.

“He was just superb today,” he said. “The messages he was sending the week of the race suggested he’d do something like that. We are not running fast times today but he did – (running) a lot faster than the other races.”

Hayes said he hoped the six-time Group 1 winner had another 20 races in him.

Hayes said there were horses in the race with Royal Ascot, Dubai and Breeders’ Cup form and they were probably the best sprinters around, and while Ka Ying Rising was making them look ordinary, he said they certainly weren’t.

He said every time Ka Ying Rising races, there was something significant he had to do, including his next two starts when he aims to equal and then break Silent Witness’ winning streak.

“He is a lot heavier and stronger now, so physically he is really improving and it is showing on the track,” Hayes said.

“The great thing about him is that he doesn’t have to lead. Today Zac wanted to take all of the risk out of it so he could get off the fence and that is another string to his bow.”

Hayes said Ka Ying Rising would be again set for Hong Kong’s Speed Series, and it would be fun to see him stretch out to seven furlongs like last year.

“It will then be the big international sprint here and then he’ll be going to The Everest,” he said. “Let’s just hope he is sound and well and if he is in the form he was today, we’d love to take those Aussies on again.”

Hayes predicted Ka Ying Rising will soon beat his Sha Tin 1200m track record of 1m 07.20.

“Zac has been easing him down in his past couple of races,” he said. “He probably ran about 20 lengths quicker than the Class 3 and the Class 4 (1200m), which he probably should.”

Repeat success

The Hong Kong Mile saw the locally-trained Voyage Bubble register a repeat success, and he was again chased home by Japan's Soul Rush, as was the case last year. However, it was a much tighter affair this year. Soul Rush edged ahead of his old rival a furlong down but Zac Purton conjured up something extra from Voyage Bubble, who rallied to win by half a length.

Trained by Ricky Liu, Voyage Bubble is a seven-year-old Australian-bred gelding by Deep Field, a sire who is a direct descendant of Fairy King.

The Irish-bred Red Lion (raced in Ireland as Fiach McHugh for Andy Slattery) took third spot, just ahead of British representative Docklands, trained by Harry Eustace. The Lion In Winter was never involved for Aidan O'Brien and Ryan Moore, finishing 12th of the 14 runners.