Zac Purton is under no illusion that Massive Sovereign has to elevate from his outstanding Hong Kong debut win to prove himself in Sunday’s BMW Hong Kong Derby (2,000m).

In one of the most exciting first-up performances seen in the city for years, the Dennis Yip Chor-hong-trained gelding stamped his Derby credentials with an explosive three-and-a-quarter-length victory in the Class Three Somerset Handicap (2,000m).

The extraordinary display followed his two victories from five starts in Ireland for trainer Aidan O’Brien when known as Broadhurst.

While Purton was notably impressed, he remains wary of the task Massive Sovereign faces second up in the city’s most prestigious race.

“It’s not easy to do what he did, of course. [Winning first up in Hong Kong at 2,000m] hadn’t been done for 25 years but he’s a horse that seems to take everything in his stride. He showed he was possibly able to handle it and he did,” Purton said.

“He went past a lot of tired horses – horses that were hitting the wall after doing a bit of work – and if you sit out the back and do no work, it can be a bit deceiving, but he let down nicely and he’s going to have to be a little bit better again this weekend.”

The six-time Hong Kong champion jockey is also cautious about a potential lack of speed after the two lead-up races, the Classic Mile and Classic Cup (1,800m), were bereft of genuine tempo.

Massive Sovereign is likely to settle in the back half of the field from his wide draw in barrier 10.

“There’s nothing we can do, we’re drawn out there,” Purton said. “Just ride him as we find him. It looks like it’s going to be another messy race.

“They walked in the Mile, they walked in the Cup so there’s no reason to think they’re going to go any quicker here. It’s going to be another messy run Derby, I think.”

Purton said Massive Sovereign’s relaxed nature will be a major advantage, given the Hong Kong Derby regularly attracts a bumper crowd of more than 50,000 at Sha Tin.

The Australian rider is eager to add to his sole Derby win on Luger, who overcame barrier 10 to win in 2015.

“He was better than them that day, he covered a bit of ground, faced the breeze and still got the job done. That’s the type of horse you need in this race,” Purton said.

The Derby has been a source of frustration for Purton, with thirds aboard Dibayani (2014), Beauty Generation (2017), Exultant (2018), More Than This (2020) and Beauty Eternal (2023) to go with seconds on Victory Magic (2016) and California Spangle (2022), who were both beaten a head.

Massive Sovereign will be Yip’s first Derby runner since 2018. The 56-year-old will aim to improve on his best finish in the feature, which was third with Silver Sun in 2006.