You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident youâre betting with more than just gut instinct.
2026 Hong Kong Cup Preview
One of the four Hong Kong International Races that are run at Sha Tin is the Hong Kong Cup. This Group 1 is run in December of each year and is open to runners aged three or older. Run over a distance of one mile and two furlongs (2,000m), the race was introduced in 1988 and originally ran over one furlong shorter (1,800m).
The race was originally restricted to runners from either Hong Kong, Malaysia or Singapore, and then in 1989, horses from both Australia and New Zealand were invited. The invitations extended further to European-trained horses in 1990, and then a year later, the US-trained horses, in 1992, horses from both Canada and Japan were also permitted entry.
Hong Kong Cup Information:
To see which runners the OLBG racing tipsters are tipping throughout the card that includes this race, head over to the Sha Tin tips on the day of the race. Do they agree with the runners on the trend shortlist, or are they predicting other runners? You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal Races in Hong Kong section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2026
How competitive is the Hong Kong Cup market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2013 when the race had an over-round of 119%. The race in 2008 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 127%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Hong Kong Cup, the over-round has been 123%, which means the bookie expects to pay out ÂŁ100 for every ÂŁ123 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Hong Kong Cup Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the Hong Kong Cup Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Hong Kong Cup races over the last 20 renewals:
- Romantic Warrior (1:59.70) in 2022
- Normcore (2:00.50) in 2020
- Romantic Warrior (2:00.51) in 2024
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 20 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the Hong Kong Cup next time out, then you would have backed a total of 5 winners. Backing all 15 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of +1.90. Ahead of the 2026 Hong Kong Cup, why not head over to the racing predictions for tips on other races today?
The runner that holds the record over the past 20 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2011 renewal when California Memory from A S Cruz under the guidance of Matthew Chadwick, won in a time of 2:04.57, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Romantic Warrior, trained by C S Shum and ridden by James McDonald set the quickest time of 1:59.70 in the 2022 renewal.
Hong Kong Cup Past Winners
Here are the Hong Kong Cup past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won, along with the age & weight of the horse. Also detailed is the stall from which the horse came and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Hong Kong Cup are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 2:02.29 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 7yo 9-0 (2 of 7) 1/10F | James McDonald C S Shum (HK) |
| 2024 2:00.51 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 6yo 9-0 (1 of 11) 1/10F | James McDonald C S Shum (HK) |
| 2023 2:02.00 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 5yo 9-0 (7 of 11) 27/20F | James McDonald C S Shum (HK) |
| 2022 1:59.70 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 4yo 9-0 (7 of 12) 17/20F | James McDonald C S Shum (HK) |
| 2021 2:00.66 | Loves Only You (JPN) 5yo 8-10 (4 of 12) 8/5F | Yuga Kawada Yoshito Yahagi (JPN) |
| 2020 2:00.50 | Normcore (JPN) 5yo 8-10 (3 of 8) 10/1 | Zac Purton Kiyoshi Hagiwara (JPN) |
| 2019 2:00.52 | Win Bright (JPN) 5yo 9-0 (8 of 8) 22/5 | Masami Matsuoka Yoshihiro Hatakeyama (JPN) |
| 2018 2:01.71 | Glorious Forever (GB) 4yo 9-0 (1 of 9) 68/10 | Silvestre De Sousa F C Lor (HK) |
| 2017 2:01.63 | Time Warp (GB) 4yo 9-0 (5 of 12) 61/20 | Zac Purton A S Cruz (HK) |
| 2016 2:00.95 | Maurice (JPN) 5yo 9-0 (8 of 12) 3/4F | Ryan Moore Noriyuki Hori (JPN) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Hong Kong Cup have been based:
- HK: 10 winners with an additional 14 placings from 101 runners
- JPN: 5 winners with an additional 13 placings from 40 runners
- FR: 2 winners with an additional 3 placings from 29 runners
- GB: 2 winners with an additional 2 placings from 18 runners
- SAF: 1 winner with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
- IRE: 0 winners with an additional 3 placings from 14 runners
- GER: 0 winners with an additional 1 placing from 5 runners
- AUS: 0 winners with an additional 2 placings from 4 runners
- USA: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 3 runners
2025 Hong Kong Cup Replay
Hong Kong Cup Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Hong Kong Cup over the last 20 renewals is C S Shum, who has won the race four times, with those four winners coming from Romantic Warrior (2022, 2023, 2024 & 2025). The only other trainer to have recorded multiple wins in the Hong Kong Cup is A S Cruz (3 wins).
Here are some of the top Hong Kong Cup trainer statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| C S Shum | 7-4-4 | -0.60 | -1.56 |
| A S Cruz | 24-3-5 | -12.25 | -13.64 |
| John Moore | 24-1-6 | -21.25 | -17.07 |
| F C Lor | 7-1-2 | +0.80 | +2.88 |
| A De Royer-Dupre | 5-1-2 | -1.45 | -1.37 |
| Noriyuki Hori | 5-1-5 | -3.25 | +2.16 |
| Masanori Sakaguchi | 2-1-1 | +24.00 | +14.00 |
| E Libaud | 2-1-1 | +5.10 | +2.66 |
| M F De Kock | 2-1-1 | +3.90 | +1.94 |
| Yoshihiro Hatakeyama | 2-1-2 | +3.40 | +3.04 |
Hong Kong Cup Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Hong Kong Cup over the last 20 renewals is James McDonald, who has won the race four times, with those four winners coming from Romantic Warrior (2022, 2023, 2024 & 2025). Other jockeys who have recorded multiple wins in the Hong Kong Cup are Ryan Moore (2 wins), Zac Purton (2 wins) and Matthew Chadwick (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Hong Kong Cup jockey statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| James McDonald | 6-4-4 | +0.40 | -0.56 |
| Ryan Moore | 14-2-7 | -9.75 | -0.96 |
| Zac Purton | 10-2-5 | +5.05 | +3.19 |
| Matthew Chadwick | 4-2-2 | +3.70 | +1.42 |
| Joao Moreira | 9-1-4 | -6.25 | -3.04 |
| Yutaka Take | 6-1-3 | +20.00 | +13.40 |
| Douglas Whyte | 6-1-1 | -1.50 | -2.90 |
| Olivier Peslier | 4-1-2 | +3.10 | +6.26 |
| Frankie Dettori | 4-1-1 | +0.80 | -0.62 |
| Christophe-Patrice Lemaire | 4-1-2 | -0.45 | -0.79 |
2026 Hong Kong Cup Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 8, 2, 4, 2, 1, 4, 1, 4, 1, 13, 1, 2, 2, (3, 4), 3, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1
The percentage shown is the percentage of the total number of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones, as you would expect them to do well. The trend information is based on the available information on the Racing Post in terms of previous runs, etc.
- 20 / 20 (62%) - No bigger than 25/1
- 20 / 20 (69%) - Ran in 9 - 26 races (Career)
- 20 / 20 (70%) - Break of 21 - 266 days (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (71%) - Dam is not ARG/AUS/BRZ/GB/NZ/SAF/SWE bred
- 20 / 20 (74%) - Not in BHR/CAN/FRA/DEU/IRL/ITA/SGP/ZAF/UAE (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (75%) - Won within last 5 starts
- 20 / 20 (78%) - Had 1 - 5 wins (Season)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Had 2 - 8 placings (Season)
- 20 / 20 (80%) - Highest Won is not G3
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Had 3 - 19 wins (Career)
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Within the first 9 of the market
- 20 / 20 (84%) - Carried 112 - 130lbs (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (84%) - Placed within last 3 starts
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Had 5 - 24 placings (Career)
- 20 / 20 (87%) - Beaten no more -6žl (Debut)
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the Sha Tin racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the Hong Kong Cup. Did you know that we have an OLBG Betting School section on OLBG? It is a place to help you improve your betting experience with articles covering numerous topics.
Are you already a member? If not, then why not? With over ÂŁ6,000 given away each month in the tipster competition, why not get involved? Remember, it is completely FREE! So, head over to the registration page to sign up today! If you are already a member, then share your thoughts on the Hong Kong Cup by adding a tip on the race here.
101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
Hong Kong Cup Trend Analysis
â The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +30.05, is when runners have had 3 wins in the past year.
â The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 0 season wins, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-47.
Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2025: Winner in 2 (5) [7 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 1 (5,7) [11 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 7 (10,2) [11 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 7 (6,4) [12 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 4 (12,10) [12 Runners]
The course which has produced the most winners of the Hong Kong Cup is Sha Tin; there have been a total of 9 winners of this race who ran at Sha Tin last time out. The next best course, which has produced the second most winners, is Tokyo; there have been a total of 3 winners of this race who ran at Tokyo last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 16 winners from a total of 186 runners, while female runners have produced 4 winners from a total of 30 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Hong Kong Cup:
- Acclamation (4 Wins)
- Archipenko (2 Wins)
- Deep Impact (2 Wins)
- Highest Honor (2 Wins)
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Hong Kong Cup despite multiple attempts:
- Galileo (0 Wins from 8 runners)
- Danehill Dancer (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was A Shin Hikari in 2015, winning for Masanori Sakaguchi at odds of 25/1 under the guidance of Yutaka Take. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 9 winning favourites in the race. Ahead of the 2026 Hong Kong Cup, why not head over to the best racing tipster page to see what the tipsters are backing today? All figures and trends above, such as the horse's previous runs, are based on the information that is available on the Racing Post.
Route to the Hong Kong Cup
Many trainers target races as preparation for the Hong Kong Cup. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Romantic Warrior Sha Tin - 1st of 9 (2/5) | Hong Kong Jockey Club Cup |
| 2024 - Romantic Warrior Sha Tin - 1st of 11 (1/10) | Hong Kong Jockey Club Cup |
| 2023 - Romantic Warrior Moonee Valley - 1st of 12 (13/5) | Ladbrokes Cox Plate |
| 2022 - Romantic Warrior Sha Tin - 1st of 9 (6/5) | Hong Kong Jockey Club Cup |
| 2021 - Loves Only You Del Mar - 1st of 12 (53/10) | Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf |
| 2020 - Normcore Hanshin - 16th of 18 (19/5) | Queen Elizabeth II Cup |
| 2019 - Win Bright Tokyo - 8th of 16 (149/1) | Tenno Sho (Autumn) |
| 2018 - Glorious Forever Sha Tin - 6th of 9 (33/10) | Hong Kong Jockey Club Cup |
| 2017 - Time Warp Sha Tin - 2nd of 8 (11/5) | Hong Kong Jockey Club Cup |
| 2016 - Maurice Tokyo - 1st of 15 (13/5) | Tenno Sho (Autumn) |
Article Contributor Information
We are fortunate to have an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to the creation and maintenance of this Hong Kong Cup Preview are Andy and James. They both work on the Horse racing tips team, looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for International racing.
James Banting
Expert Guide
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
Other Principal Races in Hong Kong
Here are some other notable races throughout Hong Kong, which take place during the racing season that we also have blogs for.
