The first meeting of the new campaign took place at Sha Tin this Sunday, but there were plenty of things that haven't changed. An attendance of over 42,000, despite the rain, shows what can be achieved when racing is properly organised. The other thing that never seems to change is the dominance of Zac Purton, who rode a 4-timer on the opening day and who looks almost certain to be champion jockey once again, even at this early stage. Purton was onboard the star performer of the day as Ka Ying Rising landed the Class 1 feature race with realitve ease. He was probably a class above this field anyway, but the fact that he was able to dominate the field without ever being fully extended would suggest that he is still improving and he looks likely to head into Group company on his next outing. Will he land a Group 1 this season? That's a difficult question, but he isn't far away.
Ka Ying Rising was impressive, but in his own way so was the horse that chased hime home, Beauty Waves. Having sat behind the eventual winner, he briefly got himself on terms before ultimately the favourites class told. However, this was still a career best from Beauty Waves and he should prove himself to be better than his current rating of 91 sooner rather than later.
Here are the time comparisons and speed figures for the winners on Sunday's card:
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