‘Wow, you are very special’: The moment Ka Ying Rising revealed just how good he is

Trainer David Hayes says it was March last year when he truly realised Ka Ying Rising was a genuine superstar.

For jockey Zac Purton, that moment came about seven months later, when the gelding ran a record time in Hong Kong.

Ka Ying Rising is the world’s best horse, in Sydney to try to pinch the $20m Everest at Randwick on Saturday.

Such is the interest that around 50 journalists from Hong Kong will be trackside to report on the thoroughbred that has captured the imagination of equine enthusiasts around the globe.

Hayes and Purton have been well aware of the hype for a long, long time, and this week recalled the moments when Ka Ying Rising blew their minds.

“He was in a class-three race, which is like a Randwick group three or listed race, he had topweight, the outside barrier, he was giving weight to the older horses on a wet track, and I thought, ‘This is a risk’,” said Hayes, in reference to Ka Ying Rising’s fifth career start at Sha Tin.

“But he torched them. He killed them that day. I thought, ‘Wow, you are very special’. And from then on, he’s been doing special things.”

Purton said of that March race: “It was a good performance that day. But I’d seen plenty of horses at a similar stage of their careers put up a performance like that, and not go on with it.

“I was a little more reserved [in my judgment] and wanted the horse to keep taking the necessary steps [forward].

“The day I really took notice was when he broke the track record last November. He hadn’t won a group 1 race by then.

“That was the day I thought, ‘You know what? You’re not just a group 1 horse. You might be a bit better than that’.

“I didn’t fully test him that day. They had track-cam on the inside of the track – it was leading into the international races in December, so they had the Longines clock set up on the inside near the winning post as well.

“It’s very rare for me to salute on a winner. He had nearly broken the track record the start before, and for whatever reason I gave a kiss and pointed to the camera.

“That moment became a bit iconic. He broke the track record, and I was easing him down towards the line when he did it.

“I see that photo all over the place now. Even the owner got a painting of it in his home. That’s the one moment that really stands out.”

Ka Ying Rising has now won 14 of his 16 career starts, including his last 13 races. He is the $1.70 favourite for The Everest and worked a treat on Monday at Canterbury, dispelling rumours on social media that all was not well with the star import. The online speculation forced bookies to momentarily close their markets on Sunday, with Hayes himself admitting the scuttlebutt was initially funny “but after three hours of it, I did my block”.

Ka Ying Rising was originally trained by Hayes’ sons, JD and Will, and even won a barrier trial at Moe when named Mr Express. The trading arm of the Hayes’ family business meant Ka Ying Rising was sold to Hong Kong before running a race locally.

“He would have been great here, he would have been the best horse in Australia,” Hayes said. “But it’s been very good for our trading business to have sold a champion horse to Hong Kong.”

Hayes insists Ka Ying Rising has taken over Better Loosen Up as the best horse he has trained.

The barrier draw for The Everest was due to be held on Sydney Harbour on Tuesday night.