Everything went as expected on Tuesday morning (24 March) for Ka Ying Rising as the eight-time Group 1 winner cruised through a barrier trial in preparation for 6 April’s HK$5.35 million G2 Sprint Cup (1200m), where he’ll attempt to secure a record-extending 19th consecutive win.

Trained by David Hayes, Ka Ying Rising clocked a trial-best 57.62s (1000m) in the eight-runner first heat down Sha Tin’s turf straight – a neck in front of Beauty Waves – under championship-leading rider Zac Purton, who confirmed the sprinter’s wellbeing.

Purton said: “He’s going really well. It’s good to be back on him. It was a nice little hit-out for him – he’ll run again in a few weeks, getting ready for (FWD) Champions Day.”

Beauty Waves found the early lead before Ka Ying Rising swept effortlessly past him from fourth position. Successful in his past 18 races in Hong Kong and Australia, Ka Ying Rising is currently the world’s top-rated horse after the March edition of the LONGINES World’s Best Racehorse Rankings was released.

After the Sprint Cup, Ka Ying Rising will go for a second HK$24 million G1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m) win on FWD Champions Day (26 April), which serves as the final leg of the HK$5 million Hong Kong Speed Series, comprising the HK$13 million G1 Centenary Sprint Cup (1200m) and HK$13 million G1 Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup (1400m).

Hayes said: “He was nice and relaxed. There were a couple of horses who put a bit of pressure on, but he stretched and got to them very easily – he won as you’d expect.

“I wanted to trial him down the straight because you never know; he might go down the straight somewhere. It’s a good experience for him, and he’s going back from 1400 to 1200 (metres), so he didn’t need a hard trial, hence why I put him over 1000.”

Ka Ying Rising – who last trialled over 1000m on turf at Sha Tin last August prior to today – earned the Hong Kong Speed Series HK$5 million bonus last season, joining Mr Vitality (1995/96), Grand Delight (2002/03), Silent Witness (2003/04 & 2004/05) and Lucky Sweynesse (2022/23) as past recipients. His 18 successive wins is a record for a Hong Kong-trained horse having surpassed the previous mark set by Silent Witness (17).

Beauty Waves is also entered for Easter Monday’s Sprint Cup, a fixture that hosts the HK$5.35 million G2 Chairman’s Trophy (1600m), which is where Lucky Sweynesse heads after trialling in 1m 36.81s over 1600m on turf under Derek Leung.

“He was good – he jumped nicely, and he knows what to do. It went smoothly – he was comfortable, and he came back well. He was just second to Romantic Warrior (in the Stewards’ Cup, G1, 1600m), but he should be ready after this trial for the Group 2 and then the Group 1 (FWD Champions Mile, 1600m),” Leung said.

Photo: HKJC