NO SURPRISES HERE – AS ALWAYS, ZAC PURTON WILL BE A BIG FACTOR ON FWD CHAMPIONS DAY

By Darren Winningham | Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Turn to any page, at any time, of racing in Hong Kong and it is a sure bet that Hong Kong’s record-breaking and multiple champion jockey Zac Purton will feature prominently in the news stories.

No surprise then that Purton comes into the FWD Champions Day in wonderful form on the back of riding a winning quartet last weekend at Sha Tin.

Not only that, but Purton, like any top rider, has several top mounts at his disposal on FWD Champions Day where he will be looking to extend his already superlative feature race riding record.

He has the ride aboard the world’s current highest ranked sprinter Ka Ying Rising in the first of the three Group 1 races – the HK$22 million Chairman’s Sprint Prize.

The David Hayes trained Ka Ying Rising is bidding for twelve wins in a row and thirteen wins from fifteen starts overall. In his two losses Ka Ying Rising finished second, only going down by a nose and a short-head. Only bad luck will see him beaten in this race.

Purton then partners Galaxy Patch for trainer Pierre Ng in the HK$24 million FWD Champions Mile. Purton rode him in the Group Two Chairman’s Trophy where he was unlucky not to beat the winner Straight Arron. Pierre Ng has added cheek pieces to the five-year-old gelding for the Champion Mile.

Purton rode him in a recent trial with the additional gear change and reported, “What I liked the most was compared to last time I trialled him, when the gap was there and he came through he was more determined in the cheek pieces.”

Galaxy Patch is looking for his maiden Group 1 victory in Hong Kong – the alteration in the gear should see him be competitive.

The final leg of Group 1 features is the FWD QEII Cup. Purton has been booked to ride the Stephen Marsh trained El Vencedor.

This six-year-old gelding is coming off three consecutive Group1 victories in New Zealand. The HKJC advised that the horse has been treated for lameness in the left hind leg. The HKJC vet has passed the gelding fit to resume trackwork as of Tuesday 22 April.

Whatever the horses involved, Purton is more often than not ‘the one to beat’ and on Sunday most punters will be expecting more of the same with Purton likely to extend his record-breaking effort as a jockey in Hong Kong – currently 1836 wins and counting!

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