Despite an unexpected defeat in a 1000m barrier trial at Royal Randwick this morning, where Ninja finished ahead of him, neither trainer nor jockey expressed concern for Hong Kong’s star galloper, Ka Ying Rising.

The world’s leading racehorse, Ka Ying Rising, burst from the barriers to assume the lead, with Ninja closely following.

Jockey Purton maintained a restrained hold on Ka Ying Rising for much of the trial. However, he applied more pressure in the straight as Ninja drew level and narrowly took the win near the finish line.

Trainer Hayes attributed Ka Ying Rising’s slender loss to the soft 7 track rating and the length of the grass on the wider part of the course proper.

“I have seen him trial better,” the Hall of Fame trainer commented.

“But the way the track was, the longer grass and the soft ground wasn’t in his favour.

“I noticed he didn’t change legs (in the straight), that’s always an indicator he’s going pretty easy.

“When Zac puts him under a bit of pressure he changes legs and finds a lot. It’s a pass mark today – but not exciting.”

Ninja, who is bound for The Everest and was partnered by Tommy Berry, edged ahead of Ka Ying Rising in the final strides to claim the trial in 59.46 seconds.

Other contenders for The Everest, Joliestar, Headwall, and Angel Capital, finished just outside the placemen

The outcome of the trial did not influence The Everest betting, with TAB Fixed Odds listing Ka Ying Rising as the $1.30 favourite, followed by Tempted at $6, Joliestar at $18, Ninja at $21, Headwall at $26, and Angel Capital at $34.

Purton indicated that Ka Ying Rising “needed the hit-out” after thriving since his arrival at the Canterbury quarantine and training facility two weeks prior.

“He pulled up having a bigger blow than what he did from his race recently,” Purton stated.

“But the softer ground, the time between runs, it gets him back into his routine, gets him familiar with what’s going on here and we saw last year how much that helped him on raceday.”

Last year, Ka Ying Rising also experienced a trial defeat at Randwick, finishing third to Overpass, yet he went on to dominate his rivals in The Everest.

Purton is confident that Ka Ying Rising is now a superior sprinter compared to 12 months ago but acknowledged his preference for a firm track for the major race.

“I’d prefer him to be on top of the ground, he likes it when it’s a hard and fast deck,” Purton said.

“As we’ve seen in the trial, and the trial last year, he seems to labour in the softer ground. Let’s hope the sun comes out and stays out.”

Hayes and Purton concurred on the primary threat in The Everest, both expressing admiration for Godolphin mare Tempted’s commanding victory in the Premiere Stakes last Saturday.

“Tempted could not have had a better lead-up race, I think her win was exceptional,” Hayes remarked.

“You know she will handle the conditions, she loves Randwick, and she’s a legitimate danger.

“She hasn’t lost since The Everest last year but our horse hasn’t lost, either.”

Purton also highlighted the impressive nature of Tempted’s most recent win.

“She was brilliant the other day, the turn of foot was incredible,” Purton said.

“She’s going to be hard to beat. She looks like she has improved, I think we have improved a bit as well.

“It’s going to be a strong race, people have been downplaying it and saying there’s not much there. But history tells us it’s the strongest sprint race on the calendar.”

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