Trainer Danny Shum is targeting a barrier trial at Happy Valley on September 27 for Romantic Warrior as Hong Kong’s world-conquering champion returns from leg surgery to prepare for a shot at a historic four-peat in December’s Group 1 Hong Kong Cup.
The seven-year-old, already the world’s richest racehorse with more than HK$214.7 million in prize money, had a screw inserted into his left fore fetlock in late May following a taxing Middle East campaign. Romantic Warrior completed his first piece of fast work on Sunday – a little over three months after surgery – and is now on track for a November return.
“He is galloping, he is OK, he will trial here at Happy Valley on the 27th,” Shum said at Happy Valley races on Wednesday night.
If all goes well in the trial, Romantic Warrior would line up on International Day in pursuit of a fourth consecutive Longines Hong Kong Cup – an achievement that would make him the first horse ever to win four straight Hong Kong International Races. A run in the G2 Jockey Club Cup (2000m) or G2 Jockey Club Mile (1600m) on November 23 is expected to serve as the stepping stone.
Romantic Warrior’s setback had forced the cancellation of a special Sha Tin homecoming parade in May, but Club officials emphasised that the surgery was the best option to stabilise the joint and hasten his return. The operation, performed under standing sedation at the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Equine Hospital, was described as routine and without complication.
Shum has been tight-lipped about future campaigns, and said after news of the surgery broke that a rematch with Forever Young in the 2026 Saudi Cup — after a heartbreaking defeat in this year’s race — was a possibility: “Going back to Saudi could happen, or he could go to Dubai again like this season. We’ll really have to be careful and judge it race by race.”
The veteran trainer has been hobbling through his own recovery after recent knee surgery left him walking with a limp. And while his stable star edges back toward the big stage, one of his Derby hopefuls has struck early trouble.
Expensive import Serious Contender – yet to be renamed in Hong Kong – showed lameness in his right fore fetlock just a week after arriving at Shum’s yard.
“I had him for one week – some walking, trotting and track work – before he showed signs of lameness,” Shum said. The Club’s website listed it as a “right fore fetlock injury” but Shum insisted it was “not too bad”.
“Fortunately we spotted it early – he looked a little bit lame in his off fore and luckily he showed us he was hurt, otherwise it could have been worse,” he added, without offering a timeline for the colt’s return.
The 2026 Hong Kong Derby hopeful is owned by Chan Kam-hung, who won the 2024 Derby with Massive Sovereign. A rating of 88 would nearly assure Serious Contender of a Derby start in March, but any time off risks turning his preparation into another race against the clock. ∎
