All eyes will be on the next release of the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings for 2026 after Ka Ying Rising’s latest record-breaking success, with the champion sprinter’s rating expected to surge to at least 130.

Sitting atop the rankings so far this year, Ka Ying Rising became Hong Kong’s highest-rated galloper in history with a figure of 128 last year and has maintained that mark in 2026.

Since the last release of the WBRR, the David Hayes-trained superstar has produced another two track record victories in the Group Two Sprint Cup (1,200m) and Sunday’s Group One Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1,200m).

His 20th consecutive victory on Sunday prompted Hayes to rate him “one of the all-time greats” and he could soon enter the territory of champion Australian sprinter Black Caviar, who achieved a rating of 132 – the best figure from a sprinter in the past 18 years – in 2011.

“I saw Black Caviar, but I think Ka Ying Rising’s level of achievement is now unparalleled,” Jockey Club head of racing product and co-chairman of the WBRR committee Greg Carpenter said.

“The next round of the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings interim list will be on May 14. To this point, he is the highest-rated horse in the world on 128. One thing I will guarantee you is he will be higher than that number after his win in the [Sprint Cup] and also again after winning the Chairman’s Sprint Prize.

“I will be personally disappointed if we don’t see a figure that’s starting with 13 when we put the interim figures out in May.”

Sunday’s FWD Champions Day meeting was lauded as one of the city’s best ever race days, with Ka Ying Rising and fellow champion Romantic Warrior taking centre stage again.

Romantic Warrior bagged his 14th Group One success with a strong victory over Japanese star Masquerade Ball in the QEII Cup (2,000m).

“When you see the quality of the FWD QEII Cup, I believe this will be, at the end of the year, one of the highest-rated races in the world,” Jockey Club chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said.

Carpenter said he had never seen a QEII Cup “with such strength in the top half of the field”, with French star Sosie and Britain’s Royal Champion running third and fourth respectively.

While the strong contingent of internationals were unable to conquer Hong Kong’s two champions and Champions Mile victor My Wish, Jockey Club executive director of racing Andrew Harding confirmed several of them will return to the city for December’s Longines Hong Kong International Races.

Officials were also thrilled to see the Hong Kong Derby (2,000m) form to the fore in the Champions Mile, with last year’s runner-up My Wish and winner Cap Ferrat finishing first and second respectively, and this year’s Derby hero Invincible Ibis running a strong fourth.

Crawford’s Classic Mile hope

Mr Incredible’s dominant triumph on Sunday flew under the radar on the Champions Day undercard, but it could be an early pointer to next year’s Classic Mile.

The three-year-old flashed potential with a smart debut win last month and bounced back from an unlucky sixth to bolt in by almost four lengths.

“We were confident today of a really big run and I think he’s a horse that is just going to keep improving,” Crawford said.

“From the day he arrived, he’s shown me that he’s a really smart horse. Obviously, that would be the long-term goal, the Classic Mile. It would be nice if I could give him one more run this season and then put him away and let him mature.”