[3] Ya Malak's dam La Tuerta was a useful sprint handicapper who won three races from eleven starts and earned a Timeform rating of 96 in 1995.
[7] As a three-year-old, Ya Malak began his season in minor events, finishing second at Haydock Park in April and then winning at Beverley Racecourse in May.
In 1995 Ya Malak finished third at Thirsk and second at Beverley before starting a 16/1 outsider for the Listed Achilles Stakes at Kempton Park Racecourse on 3 June.
Ridden by the Australian jockey Brent Thomson, who became his regular partner, he tracked the front-running favourite Eveningperformance before overtaking the filly a furlong out and winning by two lengths.
Despite his moderate form, the horse was stepped up to Group One level for the first time in August when he started a 20/1 outsider for the Nunthorpe Stakes at York Racecourse.
[11] On his first appearance for his new connections, the gelding finished fifth of six behind Bolshoi in the East Riding Stakes at Beverley in April, tiring in the closing stages after leading a furlong out.
The Dash at Epsom on 7 June saw Ya Malak assigned top weight of 128 pounds against eleven opponents headed by the Michael Jarvis-trained mare Blue Iris.
[14] At Royal Ascot thirteen days he started third favourite behind Almaty and Titus Livius in his second attempt to win the King's Stand Stakes.
At Sandown on the fifth of the month he faced his old rivals Eveningperformance and Bolshoi in the Sprint Stakes and started third favourite behind Struggler (Prix de Saint-Georges)and To The Roof (1996 Epsom Dash).
After being denied a clear run a quarter mile from the finish he recovered to take the lead in the final strides and won by a neck from Struggler.
Greaves restrained the gelding in the early stages as Eveningperformance set the pace from Coastal Bluff and Mind Games before beginning to make progress at half way.
Ya Malak stayed on strongly in the closing stages and crossed the line level with Coastal Bluff, just ahead of the fast-finishing Averti with the 50/1 outsider Cyrano's Lad taking fourth.
After examining the photo finish the racecourse judge declared a dead heat between Ya Malak and Coastal Bluff.
Ya Malak was scheduled to return to racing in 1999 and was reported by Nicholls to be "showing his old sparkle" before developing a severe case of colic in March.