This is a race that I won’t be outlaying into with six newcomers, many of whom have worked very well and it looks a tricky race to assess on that basis. Of the exposed runners, MERIDIAN GENIUS was excellent in defeat last week over the course and distance and on the back-up he should run well again – he has race experience on his side. IRON KING, LUCKY THOUGHT and SHINING ACE have all shown enough in their trials to suggest that they are capable of winning a C4 race on debut. BRILLIANT wasn’t really tested at any stage in his turf trial but he was a winner of a trial at Hawkesbury, Australia prior to arriving in Hong Kong. Shining Ace won a trial in Victoria, Australia prior to importation and he too looks a nice prospect that has more of a speed pedigree than Lucky Thought (Savabeel/Schooner). It is a complicated race and difficult to be confident of the levels of the debutants, however there’s enough with some promise that should contribute to this being a good form reference going forward.