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 QEII Cup Preview
The QEII Cup (Queen Elizabeth II Cup) was created in 1975 to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who visited Hong Kong and was initially held at the Happy Valley Racecourse.
This Group 1 is now held at the Sha Tin Racecourse in either late April or early May and is contested over 2,000m (1m2f) by runners aged three or older.
QEII Cup Information:
We also have a dedicated Sha Tin tips page that will cover this race as well as all of the other races on the day of the race. See which runners the OLBG racing tipsters are predicting to win this race and the others on the cards. 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 QEII Cup market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 16 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2023, when the race had an over-round of 121%. The race in 2021 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 124%, whilst on average over the last 16 renewals of the QEII 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 QEII 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 QEII Cup Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run QEII Cup races over the last 16 renewals:
- Win Bright (1:58.81) in 2019
- Exultant (2:00.00) in 2020
- Romantic Warrior (2:00.13) in 2022
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 16 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the QEII Cup next time out, then you would have backed a total of 6 winners. Backing all 16 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of +0.60. Ahead of the 2026 QEII Cup, why not head over to the racing predictions for tips on other races today?
When looking over the past 16 renewals, a time of 1:58.81 was set by Win Bright in 2019, trained by Yoshihiro Hatakeyama and ridden by Masami Matsuoka, which is the quickest time over that period. The slowest winning time was set in 2010 when Viva Pataca won in a time of 2:04.97 for trainer John Moore, who booked W C Marwing in the saddle.
QEII Cup Past Winners
Here are the QEII Cup past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse that won, and the horse's age & weight. 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 QEII Cup are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 2:00.51 | Tastiera (JPN) 5yo 9-0 (10 of 11) 11/4 | Damian Lane Noriyuki Hori (JPN) |
| 2024 2:01.02 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 6yo 9-0 (10 of 11) 9/10F | James McDonald C S Shum (HK) |
| 2023 2:01.92 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 5yo 9-0 (4 of 7) 13/20F | James McDonald C S Shum (HK) |
| 2022 2:00.13 | Romantic Warrior (IRE) 4yo 9-0 (4 of 10) 4/5F | Karis Teetan C S Shum (HK) |
| 2021 2:01.22 | Loves Only You (JPN) 5yo 8-10 (5 of 7) 48/10 | C Y Ho Yoshito Yahagi (JPN) |
| 2020 2:00.00 | Exultant (IRE) 6yo 9-0 (5 of 7) 11/20F | Zac Purton A S Cruz (HK) |
| 2019 1:58.81 | Win Bright (JPN) 5yo 9-0 (1 of 13) 47/1 | Masami Matsuoka Yoshihiro Hatakeyama (JPN) |
| 2018 2:00.21 | Pakistan Star (GER) 5yo 9-0 (1 of 8) 77/20 | William Buick A S Cruz (HK) |
| 2017 2:04.59 | Neorealism (JPN) 6yo 9-0 (6 of 8) 7/2 | Joao Moreira Noriyuki Hori (JPN) |
| 2016 2:01.32 | Werther (NZ) 4yo 9-0 (5 of 13) 91/20 | Hugh Bowman John Moore (HK) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the QEII Cup have been based:
- HK: 11 winners with an additional 17 placings from 111 runners
- JPN: 5 winners with an additional 8 placings from 28 runners
- SAF: 0 winners with an additional 2 placings from 9 runners
- GB: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 7 runners
- FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 5 runners
- AUS: 0 winners with an additional 1 placing from 3 runners
- IRE: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
- BHR: 0 winners with an additional 1 placing from 1 runner
- NZ: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
2025 QEII Cup Replay
QEII Cup Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the QEII Cup over the last 16 renewals is John Moore, who has won the race four times, with those four winners coming from Viva Pataca (2010), Military Attack (2013), Designs On Rome (2014) and Werther (2016). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the QEII Cup are A S Cruz (3 wins), C S Shum (3 wins) and Noriyuki Hori (2 wins).
Here are some of the top QEII Cup trainer statistics over the last 16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Moore | 26-4-8 | +9.65 | +4.77 |
| A S Cruz | 25-3-10 | -3.40 | +1.18 |
| C S Shum | 7-3-4 | -1.65 | -0.07 |
| Noriyuki Hori | 4-2-2 | +4.25 | +1.75 |
| A T Millard | 6-1-2 | -3.70 | +3.58 |
| Yoshito Yahagi | 3-1-2 | +2.80 | +1.85 |
| Katsuhiko Sumii | 2-1-1 | +3.55 | +1.73 |
| Yoshihiro Hatakeyama | 1-1-1 | +47.00 | +28.20 |
| C Fownes | 9-0-3 | -9.00 | +1.15 |
| M F De Kock | 8-0-2 | -8.00 | -5.04 |
QEII Cup Jockey Statistics
There are two leading jockeys in the QEII Cup over the last 16 renewals, with both Tommy Berry and James McDonald, who have both won the race two times. Tommy Berry winners have been with Military Attack (2013) and Designs On Rome (2014). James McDonald winners have been with Romantic Warrior (2023 & 2024).
Here are some of the top QEII Cup jockey statistics over the last 16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tommy Berry | 6-2-2 | +7.70 | +3.02 |
| James McDonald | 4-2-3 | -0.45 | -0.30 |
| Zac Purton | 14-1-3 | -12.45 | -10.67 |
| Joao Moreira | 10-1-2 | -5.50 | -5.92 |
| Karis Teetan | 8-1-3 | -6.20 | -4.41 |
| Hugh Bowman | 6-1-2 | -0.45 | -1.67 |
| Douglas Whyte | 6-1-2 | -3.70 | -2.52 |
| Neil Callan | 5-1-2 | +10.20 | +7.42 |
| C Y Ho | 5-1-1 | +0.80 | -1.00 |
| W C Marwing | 4-1-3 | +12.40 | +10.55 |
2026 QEII Cup Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 6, 1, 3, 5, 1, 3, 4, 3, 8, 2, 1, 3, 1, 1, 1, 2
The percentage shown is the proportion 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.
- 16 / 16 (68%) - Beaten no more -3žl (LTO)
- 16 / 16 (72%) - No bigger than 21/1 (LTO)
- 16 / 16 (72%) - Not in AUS/CHL/FRA/DEU/ITA/NZL/ZAF/USA/WAL (Debut)
- 16 / 16 (74%) - No bigger than 47/1
- 16 / 16 (76%) - Is not AUS/CHI/FR/SAF/USA bred
- 16 / 16 (82%) - Ran in 3 - 9 races (1 Year)
- 16 / 16 (86%) - Not in a G1/LST/Cl6 (Debut)
- 16 / 16 (87%) - Won within last 9 starts
- 16 / 16 (87%) - Achieved an RPR of 102+ (LTO)
- 16 / 16 (88%) - Within the first 10 of the market
- 16 / 16 (88%) - In a field of 7 - 14 (LTO)
- 16 / 16 (89%) - Ran in 7 - 39 races (Career)
- 15 / 16 (45%) - Achieved an RPR of 117+ (Last 3)
- 15 / 16 (70%) - No bigger than 37/5 (Last Win)
- 15 / 16 (82%) - No older than a 6yo
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the Sha Tin racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the QEII 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 QEII Cup by adding a tip on the race here.
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QEII Cup Trend Analysis
â The trend factor, which has produced 8+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +42.75, is when runners finished in 1st last time out.
â The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners finished in 2nd on debut, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-29.
Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2025: Winner in 10 (6,2) [11 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 10 (5,3) [11 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 4 (3) [7 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 4 (2,7) [10 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 5 (7) [7 Runners]
The course which has produced the most winners of the QEII Cup is Sha Tin; there have been a total of 12 winners of this race who ran at Sha Tin last time out. The next best course, which has produced the second most winners, is Nakayama; there have been a total of 3 winners of this race who ran at Nakayama last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 15 winners from a total of 156 runners, while female runners have produced 1 winner from a total of 11 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, there is only one stallion whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the QEII Cup; that stallion, Acclamation, has produced 3 winners (2024,2023,2022).
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the QEII Cup despite multiple attempts:
- Galileo (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Archipenko (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 16 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Win Bright in 2019, winning for Yoshihiro Hatakeyama at odds of 47/1 under the guidance of Masami Matsuoka. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 16 renewals, there have been 6 winning favourites in the race. Before placing your bet on the 2026 QEII Cup, head over to see which runners the best racing tipsters are tipping 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 QEII Cup
Many trainers target races as preparation for the QEII Cup. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Tastiera Sha Tin - 3rd of 11 (13/1) | Hong Kong Cup |
| 2024 - Romantic Warrior Sha Tin - 1st of 11 (33/20) | Hong Kong Gold Cup |
| 2023 - Romantic Warrior Sha Tin - 2nd of 7 (1/2) | Hong Kong Gold Cup |
| 2022 - Romantic Warrior Sha Tin - 1st of 14 (11/4) | BMW Hong Kong Derby 2022 |
| 2021 - Loves Only You Meydan - 3rd of 9 (20/1) | Dubai Sheema Classic |
| 2020 - Exultant Sha Tin - 2nd of 11 (1/5) | Hong Kong Gold Cup |
| 2019 - Win Bright Nakayama - 1st of 11 (6/1) | Nakayama Kinen |
| 2018 - Pakistan Star Sha Tin - 4th of 10 (23/5) | The Chairmans Trophy |
| 2017 - Neorealism Nakayama - 1st of 11 (71/10) | Nakayama Kinen |
| 2016 - Werther Sha Tin - 1st of 14 (67/20) | BMW Hong Kong Derby 2016 |
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 QEII Cup Preview are Andy and James. They both work on the Horse Racing Tips team, overseeing the tipsters and managing the tip settlement, while also creating and managing all 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.
