My Wish has already provided Mark Newnham with a string of highlights this season and the Australian horseman hopes his diminutive galloper can produce a crowning performance in the HK$24 million G1 FWD Champions Mile (1600m) at Sha Tin on Sunday (27 April).
Winless from two starts in 2023/24, My Wish has rocketed from a rating of 54 to 101 in just eight starts this preparation with four wins, two seconds and two thirds – for prizemoney of HK$18.65 million – to emerge as one of Hong Kong’s most consistent and exciting young horses.
Weighing just under 1,000lb, My Wish has repeatedly belied his diminutive frame with herculean performances and was outstanding in the Four-Year-Old Classic Series, winning the Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) and running second in the Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) to Rubylot and the BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) to Cap Ferrat.
His rattling effort to surge from the tail of the field on the turn in the BMW Hong Kong Derby ultimately saw him finish a short head shy of victory but, in doing so, the Flying Artie gelding clocked the fastest final 400m sectional – 21.39s – in a 2000m race at Sha Tin since 2008, eclipsing the times of champions such as Golden Sixty and Romantic Warrior.