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By Ray Hickson

He used to be called Mr Express but to the racing world he’s Ka Ying Rising.

He’s the undisputed king of global sprint racing, untouchable in Hong Kong, and Sydney’s about to experience what all the fuss is about when he lands to tackle the Group 1 $20 million TAB Everest.

It’s the race his trainer David Hayes has been waiting eight years to win – back in the inaugural year of 2017 he trained Vega Magic who ran second behind Redzel – and he’s bringing the biggest gun he has to throw at the Royal Randwick showpiece.

Ka Ying Rising's trainer David Hayes & jockey Zac Purton (Pic: Grant Guy).

“I think it is a big deal for Australian racing that he’s coming,’’ Hayes said.

“It’s a big deal for Hong Kong. It’s a win-win really.

“The Hong Kong sprint scene is so strong, for the temptation to travel you need an Everest to disrupt a Hong Kong preparation and that’s how big the Everest is now.

“It’s caught up to the major races in the world very quickly.”

So how did Mr Express become Ka Ying Rising?

Let’s go back to 2023 and a young horse by Shamexpress was showing some promise in New Zealand from the few gallops he’d had and it came to Hayes’ attention.

He entrusted the early stages of the then two-year-old’s career to his sons Ben, Will, and JD at Lindsay Park and he won a public barrier trial at Moe in early June of 2023 – enough to encourage Hayes that he was suitable for Hong Kong.

“He was recommended to me by bloodstock agent Mike Morais from New Zealand, he’d been galloping well and won some jump outs,’’ he said.

“I bought him and sent him to the boys and told them to assess him and see if they thought he was a good horse. About five weeks in they started to like him and his two trials were quite impressive.

“I sold him to a very good client in Hong Kong.”

Named Ka Ying Rising, he trialled five times in Hong Kong prior to making a winning debut in December of 2023.

Only twice so far has the gelding been beaten and those defeats came at his next two starts in Class 3 races when a horse called Wunderbar, interestingly ridden by James McDonald, narrowly had his measure.

That horse has just reached Class 1 company while Ka Ying Rising is now a four-time Group 1 winner and considered basically unbeatable at home.

Hayes remembers the day he thought Ka Ying Rising could turn into something out of the ordinary.

It was March 24 of 2024 at his fifth race start.

“I always thought he looked good in Hong Kong, he won most of his trials there without trying,’’ he said.

“When he was in Class 3, which is sometimes like a Listed race in Australia, he carried 135 (61kg) from barrier 11 as a three-year-old giving good older horses weight.

“He won and nearly broke the track record easing down and I thought ‘wow you’re a bit special’. From then on he’s kept on doing what Ka Ying does - running fast times and dominating.”

Just how good does Hayes truly think his superstar is?

The two defeats mean Ka Ying Rising will never be unbeaten but with 12 wins in a row now and that unbeatable aura he says it’ll soon be worth putting him in the conversation with the untouchable Black Caviar - particularly if he can conquer the TAB Everest.

“He’s the best horse I’ve ever trained. He’s very special,’’ Hayes said.

“He’s the number one rated sprinter in the world and the highest rated for some time.

“I always thought I’d never see a Black Caviar but at the 13 or 15 run mark he’s very comparable.

“He’s got to do it for another 12 months and he could be compared to the great Black Caviar. She did it for four seasons and let’s hope this horse can.”

Ka Ying Rising sails to victory at Sha Tin. (Pic: Hong Kong Jockey Club).

It’s only natural that the Hong Kong Jockey Club would want to keep their superstar at home for the fans to enjoy so it’s a huge acknowledgement of the TAB Everest’s standing for them to buy the Australian Turf Club’s slot for two years, send their champion to Sydney and be a part of the race.

After consideration was given to staying on for the $3 million Russell Balding Stakes (1300m) two weeks later it’ll be a hit and run mission with defending his International Sprint title in December a high priority.

“The club were very keen to come but for him only to have one race in Australia, that’s the Everest, then to go back for Hong Kong,’’ he said.

“He’s such a high profile horse they want him not over raced before our big international meeting.”

The plan set out by Hayes will see Ka Ying Rising contest the Chief Executive’s Cup (1200m) on September 7 under 61kg as he did a year ago, following two local trials, then he goes into quarantine that night.

Once he arrives in Sydney and completes his quarantine at Canterbury the public will have a chance to see Ka Ying Rising and jockey Zac Purton in a barrier trial at Randwick racecourse likely on October 7, something Hayes says will be important to his Everest chances.

“It’s critical for my staff and the horse to do a practice run at Randwick,’’ he said.

“He’s never been saddled up in stalls like that, it’ll be a good dress rehearsal. The horse will get a look around the track he’s going to be racing.

“He’s only raced at Sha Tin but he has trialled at Moe and Flemington and he’d been around a bit in New Zealand before he came to me.

“When you’re travelling a horse they’ve got to get to Australia, settle in, and do it so there’s a bit of water to go under the bridge.

“But it hasn’t worried the (William) Haggas horses, has it. And they’ve come from England. If he arrives in Australia the way he was racing last season he’s a deserved favourite.”

*This article originally appeared in the September 2025 edition of the Racing NSW magazine

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