Ka Ying Rising may be Hong Kong’s current sprint king, but champion jockey Joao Moreira is hopeful that Japanese visitor Satono Reve can spoil the party in Sunday’s Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m) at Sha Tin.

The two horses previously met in the Hong Kong Sprint last December, where Ka Ying Rising prevailed and Satono Reve, under Moreira for the first time, finished a close third.

Satono Reve will jump from barrier six, two gates outside of Ka Ying Rising, and Moreira is content with the setup.

“I am happy because he is a big horse and he needs space,” he said. “It seems like the real pace will come from the inside and two wider so it is a good draw, I guess.”

Trained in Japan and lightly raced, Satono Reve is fresh from a career-best win in the Group 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen at Chukyo. His 123 Racing and Sports rating for that effort came close to his Hong Kong mark of 125 from December.

“He’s a bloody good horse and he could be one to cause an upset here,” said Moreira. “Ka Ying Rising deserves all the respect we give him and is one of the best the world has, but I’m happy to take the reins of Satono Reve and hopefully things work out.”

“He finished less than a length behind Ka Ying Rising last time. He doesn’t need to find much more to be right there.”

Moreira is also booked for two other Group 1 runners on the card: Changcheng Glory in the Champions Mile and Moments In Time in the QE II Cup.