Trainer Danny Shum made the trip to Moonee Valley on Saturday to celebrate Romantic Warrior’s induction into the W.S. Cox Plate Hall of Fame and his recognition with the Kingston Town Greatness Award.
The 2023 Cox Plate winner was joined in the Hall of Fame by his regular rider James McDonald, who received the honor after riding four consecutive Cox Plate winners, capped by Via Sistina’s narrow victory on Saturday.
Shum said Romantic Warrior continues to recover well from leg surgery and that a decision will be made on Tuesday on when and where he will trial ahead of the G2 BOCHK Jockey Club Cup on November 23.
First presented in 2000, the Kingston Town Greatness Award is named after the only horse to win three consecutive Cox Plates, Kingston Town (1980–82). The Moonee Valley Racing Club established the award to recognize horses and people whose achievements have had a lasting impact on the race’s proud history.
Its past recipients include some of racing’s most famous names. The Winx team was honored in 2020 after the mare’s record four straight Cox Plate victories, while So You Think and Phar Lap were jointly recognized in 2019 as dual champions from different eras. Great trainers Bart Cummings, T.J. Smith and Lee Freedman have been celebrated for their Cox Plate triumphs, along with star jockeys Glen Boss, Brent Thomson and Darby Munro.
