As storm clouds swirled above Sha Tin Racecourse and thunder rumbled, two Japanese raiders laid down serious markers ahead of their attempt to derail Romantic Warrior's bid to become just the third horse to complete Hong Kong racing's Triple Crown in Sunday's Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup.
Only River Verdon in 1994 and Voyage Bubble last season have swept the series – the Stewards' Cup at 1600m, the Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup at 2000m and Sunday's staying test at 2400m – a feat demanding rare versatility and one that carries a HK$10 million bonus on top of the race's prizemoney.
The two strenuous workouts yesterday were ominous warnings from horses that may look overmatched on paper against the highest prizemoney earner in world racing history. But asked who he feared most among eight rivals, Romantic Warrior’s trainer Danny Shum Chap-shing did not hesitate.
"Always Japan," he said, before elaborating. "They are always good and they send strong horses everywhere. The Group 1 racing in Japan is very competitive, so you have to respect them."
Hiroyasu Tanaka's Rousham Park – already a two-time visitor to Sha Tin, defeated twice by Romantic Warrior at 2000m – now gets a crack at 2400m, a distance that should better suit the five-year-old who chased home celebrated globetrotter Rebel's Romance over 2500m in the 2024 Breeders' Cup Turf at Del Mar, beaten just half a length. Most recently he was a fast-closing third at Group 2 level over 2500m at Nakayama in March.
Rousham Park was first to work on the course proper as light rain fell, working through three-quarter pace to the turn before zipping home on the yielding ground in 23.2 seconds for his final 400m.
Head of International Affairs for Northern Farm, Yosuke Sai said: "He has settled in well. He arrived on Sunday and had already done his major work in Japan – this is more a maintenance piece of work. He has a big stride which isn't usually ideal on this type of ground, but he is by Harbinger and he moved OK today."
Hugh Bowman rides Rousham Park on Sunday.
Deep Monster followed his compatriot onto the track and despite looking sluggish early, rattled off a sharp final 400m of 22.4 seconds. The Yasutoshi Ikee-trained eight-year-old – from the barn that produced the mighty Orfevre and Romantic Warrior's Dubai Turf nemesis Soul Rush – has never won at top level but comes off victory in the Amir Trophy in Qatar.
Joao Moreira rides Deep Monster in pursuit of the only Group 1 that has eluded the Brazilian in his illustrious Hong Kong career.
Romantic Warrior's last home defeat came in this race three years ago – his only start beyond 2000m – adding an extra layer of intrigue to a Triple Crown bid that would add yet another layer to one of the sport’s most storied careers.
Hot, sunny conditions are forecast for the weekend with temperatures reaching 32 degrees and low chances of rain, which should ensure a much firmer surface than the yielding ground the Japanese pair encountered yesterday.
