Zac Purton has ridden and competed against some of Hong Kong’s best gallopers in his 17 years in the city but in his eyes, none compare to Golden Sixty.

“He’s the best horse I’ve seen in my time here in Hong Kong,” Purton said.

“He was the perfect racehorse, really.”

The seven-time champion Hong Kong jockey led a chorus of tributes for Golden Sixty after the superstar’s retirement from racing was officially announced on Friday.

Francis Lui Kin-wai’s once-in-a-lifetime galloper broke multiple records and attracted a legion of fans in his mesmerising career, which finished with 26 wins from 31 starts and a world record HK$167,170,600 in prize money.

His Hong Kong-record haul of 10 Group One victories includes three Hong Kong Miles, three Champions Miles and a pair of wins in both the Stewards’ Cup (1,600m) and Gold Cup (2,000m).

Purton revealed the anguish and sense of inevitability he experienced riding against Golden Sixty.

“Firstly it was heartbreaking, just to be behind the gates and in the races with him knowing that you’re basically going to run second,” he said.

“He was such a good horse. I loved his will to win, the way he pinned his ears back, the acceleration he showed – that turn of foot is very rare to see horses run home in the sectionals he would run home in, over the distances he ran.

“He became more versatile as his career progressed as well. He was able to be ridden more prominently on the speed. He’d go inside or outside.”

Purton proved to be Golden Sixty’s nemesis when he was responsible for three of the son of Medaglia d’Oro’s defeats.

The star Australian rider halted Golden Sixty’s winning streak at 16 – one short of the Hong Kong record set by Silent Witness – when he pinched the Stewards’ Cup on Waikuku in 2022.

He again relegated Golden Sixty to second when guiding California Spangle to a narrow victory in that year’s Hong Kong Mile, before winning the Group One Champions Mile on Beauty Eternal in April this year.

In what would be his final start, Golden Sixty ran fourth behind Beauty Eternal on an unsuitable yielding track.

“Our challenge was to always try and find a way to beat him and really at the end of the day, it was just circumstances and bad luck that beat him,” Purton said.

“I always love seeing horses of his calibre race and although it was difficult through those years to go up against him, it also made it challenging to try find a way to beat him. Fortunately I did a few times, but not enough.”

Karis Teetan also paid tribute to Golden Sixty.

“He brought so many fans to the races, I don’t think we’ll see it again,” Teetan said.

“Being in a race with him was just different. We all had to be aware of when he was coming and I remember him beating me when I was on Romantic Warrior, and that was not a nice feeling. I thought I had the race won and I just remember this massive head coming on my outside.

“He was just a different horse and I think he’s going to be missed by many people in Hong Kong.”