Meet Hong Kong superstar Romantic Warrior

The exciting news has surfaced that Danny Shum’s superstar Hong Kong galloper Romantic Warrior will make plans to contest the 2023 Ladbrokes Cox Plate on the 28th of October at The Valley. The Irish-bred middle-distance specialist has been one of Hong Kong’s best horses for two seasons running, boasting an incredible overall record of 14 starts for 10 wins (71%) and three placings (93%).&nbsp; He won the Hong Kong Classic Mile and the Hong Kong Derby as a four-year-old, both classified as domestic Group 1 races but not recognised at the elite level on a global scale, but has since won three Group 1’s in open company, winning the 2022 Hong Kong Cup and twice a winner of the FWD QEII Cup. Romantic Warrior’s remarkable consistency has shone brightest of any horse in Hong Kong bar the great Golden Sixty, and he’s developed into a top-liner at 2000 metres, becoming the equal fifth best rated racehorse in the world. Racecaller Mark McNamara described him as “the perfect racehorse” as he crossed the line in the 2022 Hong Kong Cup, some four-and-a-half lengths clear of his nearest rival, Japanese Group 1 winner Danon The Kid.&nbsp; While not perfect in a literal sense, Romantic Warrior is racing’s near enough version to it. The son of Acclamation possesses all the attributes a trainer longs for in a racehorse. A wonderful confirmation, good racing manners, tactical versatility, a fantastic will to win that matches his elite turn of foot and of course – speed to burn. To put it in footballing terms, he is the classy midfielder who goes pick one in the draft.&nbsp; Romantic Warrior’s great tussles with fellow five-year-old California Spangle and Hong Kong’s champion Golden Sixty saw the trio donned ‘The Big Three’, with little separating them on many occasions when they have clashed. Golden Sixty holds top billing with an international rating of 125, but Romantic Warrior is close behind on 123, with California Spangle on 122. The other Hong Kong superstar that has burst into calculations and turned three into four this season is king sprinter Lucky Sweynesse, who also sits on 125 and can lay claim to being the best sprinter in the world. A golden era for Hong Kong racing, with four of the top eleven turf horses currently in the globe.&nbsp; In Romantic Warrior’s latest two victories at Group 1 level, he has been partnered by Australia’s leading jockey James McDonald, who is the reigning Ladbrokes Cox Plate champion having steered Anamoe to victory last year. McDonald will almost certainly be the one to ride him in the Ladbrokes Cox Plate this year too, with trainer Danny Shum indicating that the star New Zealand born rider will help him map out a Melbourne Spring preparation that could include a lead up run before he contests the Ladbrokes Cox Plate.&nbsp; Adding to the story of Romantic Warrior is the tie in of Dubai Honour, who dominated the Australian Autumn with back-to-back Group 1 successes in Sydney, taking out the Ranvet-Queen Elizabeth double. Dubai Honour easily handled Mo’unga and Anamoe in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, before flying north to Hong Kong where he could only manage a 2.5 length defeat in 3rd at the hands of Romantic Warrior – an ominous form reference that is sure to attract great attention come October.&nbsp; If there is a chink in the armour of Romantic Warrior, barring the obvious risks of travel, it could be that he’s never seen wet ground and has never run anti-clockwise. While Hong Kong has had one of its wettest periods in recent memory, the Warrior has avoided the rain up until this point and could be facing conditions he’s never seen before if we happened to see weather like that of the past two years. Last year Anamoe won on a Heavy 8 track, while in 2021 State Of Rest won on a deteriorating Soft 5. Ground aside, Romantic Warrior has rightfully assumed his position as favourite for the 2023 Ladbrokes Cox Plate following Sunday’s news and will only continue to shorten if he arrives in Australia as well as he left Hong Kong.&nbsp; In terms of the best international horses ever to run in the Ladbrokes Cox Plate, Godolphin’s Grandera and Benbatl are a couple<ins cite="mailto:Nick%20Hluchaniuk" datetime="2023-07-03T15:32"> </ins>that come to mind, while subsequential superstar Highland Reel and of course 2019 and 2021 champions Lys Gracieux and State Of Rest all have strong claims. Romantic Warrior is set to add his name to the list this year and he has a great chance to make history by becoming the first ever Hong Kong-trained runner to win the Ladbrokes Cox Plate.