Yasuda Kinen (Group 1)

THERE is no tougher thoroughbred in training than the six-year-old son of Acclamation that is Hong Kong’s Romantic Warrior

The Irish-bred completed an extraordinary season with victory at Tokyo Racecourse on Sunday as Danny Shum’s globe-trotter won a fifth successive Group 1 race.

Romantic Warrior became Hong Kong’s third Yasuda Kinen winner, joining Fairy King Prawn (2000) and Bullish Luck (2006).

Victories in the Group 1 W.S. Cox Plate, Longines Hong Kong Cup, Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup, FWD QEII Cup, see Romantic Warrior recording his eighth Group 1 overall, enhancing his career record to 15 wins from 20 starts.

Watched in steady rain by a crowd of 44,577, he settled in fifth, and Romantic Warrior was angled into the clear in the home straight.

Driven out by James McDonald, Romantic Warrior had half a length to spare on the line from Namur (Yutaka Take), while Soul Rush was a further nose further back under Joao Moreira.

“James McDonald is world-class and he gave him a great ride. He loves Romantic Warrior and Romantic Warrior loves him a lot. He always tries his best for James,” Shum said. “I wasn’t too nervous because I was confident in my horse, my team and my jockey.”

Champion

Recording his first win in Japan, McDonald said to Hong Kong media afterwards: “He’s a champion racehorse and it’s a very proud day for all of us – the whole team – because to showcase him to Japan was something very, very special in such a prestigious race.

“I’m almost lost for words when I ride this horse because he’s got a big heart and he tries his best all the time. It’s such a hard jurisdiction to race in. There’s such good horses and great jockeys so it’s an absolute privilege to be here and to be winning such a prestigious race is very, very special.”

Earning HK$9 million for the victory, Romantic Warrior has now amassed HK$151 million in prize money, a figure bettered only by Golden Sixty’s HK$167 million.

Shum confirmed Romantic Warrior would return to Hong Kong with Voyage Bubble.

“I think the best thing for the horse is to give him a break and let him rest. He’s not going to race anymore this season,” Shum said.