Champion Awards (Election Details)

The 2024/25 season will be celebrated as one of the most extraordinary in the Club’s history with the towering performances of Hong Kong’s three equine titans – Ka Ying Rising, Romantic Warrior and Voyage Bubble - on the international horse racing stage.

With only 1,300 horses in training – or around 0.7 percent of the world’s horse population - Hong Kong’s three most outstanding equine athletes covered the city in glory with a string of historic feats, both at home and abroad.

River Verdon’s feats have long been celebrated in Hong Kong and his effort in 1993/94 to secure the Triple Crown – which requires the same horse to land the G1 Stewards’ Cup (1600m), G1 Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m) and G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup (2400m) in the same season – had remained unmatched in 31 years.

Prepared perfectly by Ricky Yiu and ridden brilliantly by James McDonald, Voyage Bubble rewrote another piece of history with his sweep of the lucrative series in 2024/25, having also won the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile (1600m).

Few victories in Hong Kong this season were more riveting than Voyage Bubble’s in the Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup when the 2023 BMW Hong Kong Derby winner demolished his rivals, including decorated British raider Dubai Honour.

Ka Ying Rising set the tone for a stellar season in November when he broke Sacred Kingdom’s Sha Tin 1200m record (1m 07.5s) with a gallop of 1m 07.43s, lowering a mark which had stood since 2007.

David Hayes’ wonder sprinter broke his own record just two months later in a time of 1m 07.2s as part of a perfect eight-race campaign which delivered four Group 1 triumphs – G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m), G1 Centenary Sprint Cup (1200m), G1 Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup (1400m) and G1 FWD Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m) - and incorporated a successful tilt at the Hong Kong Speed Series.

Sitting joint fourth alongside Romantic Warrior in the latest LONGINES World’s Best Racehorse Rankings at 126 behind joint top-rated horses Field Of Gold, Forever Young and Ombudsman (127), Ka Ying Rising extended his current winning streak to 12 – a sequence bettered only in Hong Kong by Silent Witness (17) and Golden Sixty (16).

Fresh from an all-conquering 2023/24 campaign which annexed three different racing strongholds with victories in the G1 W. S. Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley, the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m), G1 Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup (2000m), G1 FWD QEII Cup (2000m) – all at Sha Tin - and the G1 Yasuda Kinen (1600m) at Tokyo Racecourse, Romantic Warrior continued in a truly remarkable vein this season.

Danny Shum’s flagbearer added a record-breaking third G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup (2000m) to his resume before embarking on an ambitious overseas campaign. He struck paydirt immediately with victory in record time in G1 Jebel Hatta (1800m) at Meydan Racecourse in January, clocking 1m 45.10s under James McDonald and becoming the first Hong Kong horse to win the Jebel Hatta and making him a Group 1 winner in four separate jurisdictions.

The world’s best turf middle-distance horse’s attempt to topple the sport’s finest dirt galloper fell only a neck short of ultimate success when Romantic Warrior was denied by Forever Young in an epic staging of the G1 Saudi Cup (1800m, dirt) in Riyadh – in record time.

Returning to Meydan’s turf, Romantic Warrior was thwarted by Japan’s Soul Rush in a pulsating renewal of the G1 Dubai Turf (1800m). The official margin was a nose, while the actual distance separating the pair was eight millimetres.

Hong Kong was again the beneficiary this season of much appreciated international support with the presence of champion horsemen including Marco Botti, Aidan O’Brien and the best from Japan. Renowned as one of the most prestigious events on the global racing calendar, 2024 LONGINES Hong Kong International Races (HKIR) attracted 27 elite international contenders, including an impressive 16 individual Group 1 winners. Continuing the momentum, the 2025 FWD Champions Day welcomed 14 overseas gallopers, featuring nine distinguished Group 1 winners, all converging in Hong Kong to vie for glory across three premier Group 1 races.

Marco combined with Oisin Murphy to clinch the G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m) with Giavellotto while Tastiera proved his elite class with success in the G1 FWD QEII Cup (2000m) under Damian Lane for Japanese trainer Noriyuki Hori.

The Four-Year-Old Classic Series was again an unqualified success as Mark Newnham’s My Wish won the Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) under Luke Ferraris before David Hayes-trained Rubylot stormed to victory in the Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) for Brenton Avdulla.

Faithful to a tradition of producing dramatic and tight finishes, the BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) was again decided by a narrow margin – this time a short head – as Francis Lui and Craig Williams triumphed with Cap Ferrat.

Zac Purton has swept towards an eighth Hong Kong jockeys’ championship with Hugh Bowman, Andrea Atzeni, Matthew Poon and Matthew Chadwick also enjoying outstanding seasons.

Meanwhile, legendary trainer John Size has once again demonstrated his exceptional mastery of the sport, extending his record and securing an unprecedented 13th Champion Trainer title. His continued dominance is a testament to his enduring excellence in Hong Kong racing.

In recognition of our owners’ efforts to secure the best available equine talent, and to attract overseas participation, Hong Kong’s 12 Group 1 races carried a record HK$265 million for the 2024/25 racing season, while the four LONGINES Hong Kong International Races Group 1s were worth a combined HK$126 million and the three Group 1 races at 2025 FWD Champions Day offered HK$74 million.

On behalf of The Hong Kong Jockey Club, we extend our thanks to all who have contributed and worked to make the 2024/25 season a success, including the Association of Hong Kong Racing Journalists and the Hong Kong Racehorse Owners Association.

Thank you also to all owners and Club staff for their understanding and support during what has been a challenging phase, and to all racing fans for their unquenchable passion. We look forward to next season with optimism and confidence and the racing community’s continued support.