It’s a dead-heat!
For the first time in Hong Kong racing history, two horses have shared the Hong Kong Horse of the Year award, and what absolute champions these two runners are, with Ka Ying Rising and Romantic Warrior proving inseparable in the selection process for racing’s highest honour.
It is the second Horse of the Year award for both runners, with the world’s top-rated sprinter Ka Ying Rising landing the title for the second season in a row, while Triple Crown winner Romantic Warrior previously earned the honour in 2023/24.
Trained by David Hayes, Ka Ying Rising has posted a phenomenal record of eight wins from eight starts this season, five at Group 1 level, setting three new track records while extending his unbeaten streak to a remarkable 20 consecutive victories, another new record.
Ka Ying Rising just keeps raising the bar and it was no surprise that he also secured back-to-back Champion Sprinter titles after claiming the Hong Kong Speed Series for the second straight year.
Ka Ying Rising’s honour roll also includes victory in The Everest in Sydney, where he became the first overseas-trained horse to win the richest race on turf.
The Danny Shum-trained Romantic Warrior completed the Hong Kong Triple Crown by stepping up in distance at each stage, winning the Group 1 Stewards’ Cup (1600m), the Group 1 Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m) and the Group 1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup (2400m).
Romantic Warrior, the 2023 Cox Plate winner, also claimed five Group 1 victories this season, including both the LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m) and the FWD QEII Cup (2000m), winning each of those races for an unprecedented fourth time.
In the process, he extended his world-record prize-money earnings to HK$288,745,697.
Romantic Warrior also took out the Champion Middle-Distance Horse and Champion Stayer awards, while being crowned this year’s Champion Miler.
Nobody can argue with that result.
These are two champions well worthy of their shared recognition.
