Romantic Warrior and McDonald target Hong Kong Triple Crown

Romantic Warrior, one of the superstars of Hong Kong racing, will kick off his quest to land the Hong Kong Triple Crown when he tackles the Group 1 Stewards Cup (1600m) at Sha Tin on Sunday.

Trainer Danny Shum has elected to keep the much travelled eight-year-old at home this time around, after due consideration, resisting the temptation to have another go at the US$20 million Saudi Cup in February and the US$5 million Dubai Turf in March – races in which he finished second in heartbreaking fashion last year, beaten by a nose by Forever Young in Riyadh after a titanic struggle, and only headed in the final stride by Soul Rush in another epic encounter in Dubai.

With total prizemoney already banked of HK$240,105,697 and having recorded 20 wins from 27 starts – including Group 1 victories in Australia (the Cox Plate), Dubai, Hong Kong and Tokyo – the eleven-time Group 1 winning son of Acclamation has little left to prove, making a home-based campaign the logical option for a horse who owes nobody anything.

Romantic Warrior has won both of his starts this season. The first came in the Group 2 BOCHK Jockey Club Cup, a performance made even more remarkable given it was his first run in 232 days after undergoing surgery for an incomplete fetlock fracture. Resuming over 2000m, he comfortably defeated top-class rival Voyage Bubble by 1.5 lengths.

At his second run of the campaign, Romantic Warrior rewrote the record books by winning the Group 1 Longines Hong Kong Cup for an unprecedented fourth time, further cementing his place among the greats of the modern era.

Shum has now set his sights on the Hong Kong Triple Crown, which comprises Sunday’s Stewards Cup (1600m), the Group 1 Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m), and the Group 1 Champions & Chater Cup (2400m).

Romantic Warrior’s victories have come across a wide range of distances, from 1200m through to 2040m, underlining his remarkable versatility.

James McDonald, who learned this week that his other champion Via Sistina has been retired, has partnered Romantic Warrior in all but three of his 19 starts over the past three-and-a-half seasons and will again make the trip from Sydney to take the ride on Sunday.

The champion pairing will face eight rivals, including familiar foes Voyage Bubble and the Mark Newnham-trained My Wish, in what shapes as another elite-level contest.

Romantic Warrior was purchased by the Hong Kong Jockey Club for 300,000 guineas at the 2019 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale and has since developed into one of the most accomplished international performers of the modern era.