Road to the Derby: Jimmy Ting's Little Paradise charges into Classic Mile contention

In the fifth instalment of The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Road to the Derby series, we profile a contender who has charged up the ratings this season – the Jimmy Ting-trained Little Paradise.

With less than two weeks until the first leg of the prestigious 2025/26 Four-Year-Old Classic Series – the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) on 1 February – and with the 149th HK$26 million BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) on 22 March on the horizon, Little Paradise’s mark of 95 makes him one of the highest-rated gallopers of his age in the city.

Little Paradise will enter the Hong Kong Classic Mile among the favourites, and while the 1600m trip will be unfamiliar for the gelding, owner Ko Kam Piu knows all about the prestigious four-year-old contest after finishing fifth in the 2011 edition of the race with subsequent Group One-winning sprinter Little Bridge.

By Toronado, who also produced 2024 Hong Kong Classic Mile and Hong Kong Classic Cup winner Helios Express, Little Paradise was sourced for Ko at the 2023 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, selling for AU$270,000 (approx. HK$1.4 million).

Unbeaten in two Class 4 1200m starts to begin his career before tasting defeat twice in Class 3 to round out his debut campaign, Little Paradise ticked the Class 3 box first up this season but fell agonizingly short with a big weight in the same grade when tackling 1400m for the first time in November.

The Privately Purchased Griffin has had no such issues since, prevailing under top weight of 135lb in a 1400m Class 3 contest in December before producing a commanding victory in the Class 2 Racing Club Cup (1400m) at Sha Tin on 11 January.

After travelling midfield on the rail in a genuinely run race – leader Dancing Code covered the first 600m almost a second inside standard – Little Paradise was eased off the rail on turning by Zac Purton before being unleashed down the centre of the track in the home straight to prevail in Class 2 company at the first time of asking.

“He’s a nice horse. I had confidence he could measure up in Class 2,” said Ting of his galloper’s one-length success.

“I think he can handle the mile and I think the horse is improving. At this stage I think his best distance will be 1600m. One thing is that maybe at the 1600m the pace is a bit slower and he will need to learn to calm down at the back of the field.”

With Purton opting to ride Sagacious Life in the Hong Kong Classic Mile, Ting has booked Vincent Ho to partner Little Paradise, and the trainer is hopeful the horse will give his jockey reason to stick with him through to the Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) and the BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m).

“At this stage, I don’t know yet but I think the horse could handle the longer distances because he is a quiet horse. Hopefully he can,” Ting said.

Elsewhere among Hong Kong’s four-year-old crop, Patch Of Cosmo rocketed into Hong Kong Classic Mile calculations with victory inhis first run since March at Sha Tin on Sunday.

Sent off a 3.9-1 chance for the Class 3 Tennis 1600m Handicap, Patch Of Cosmo returned from a tendon injury in style, finishing strongly down the middle of the track to notch a win that boosted his rating into 84.

Akashvani was another notable four-year-old winner at Sha Tin and he will also have the rating (82) to figure when the priority to run for the Hong Kong Classic Mile is release later this week.