Not a lot happened at the track this morning, however all the horses did leave the quarantine centre for some light exercise on the all weather track. Connections all rolled out the same type of line “Horse is well, nice and relaxed. All we need is a bit of luck  in running and he’ll be in the finish”. Stock standard stuff the day before a big race.

Indeed all the horses look well and have taken to the new surroundings without turning a hair it seems. Mongolian Saturday is probably the one that looks a little ‘lost’, but he was like that in December and ran well enough for fifth. However he’ll need to improve on that tomorrow as he meets a tougher field here.

Let’s have a stab at working theses races out and hopefully find a winner.

CHAIRMANS SPRINT

It would be nice to know how the track will play, Sha Tin  can be difficult for closers at times, particularly over shorter trips. However we don’t have  that luxury and will assume it will play evenly

There should be good pace here, with Peniaphobia looking to lead and Aerovelocity coming across from his wide gate looking for a spot just behind the leaders. Buffering will push forward as he usually does from gate three, and Mongolian Saturday will want to utilise barrier one to advantage.

Not Listenin’Tome, Lucky Bubbles, The Wizardofoz and Gold-Fun will all look to be sitting just behind the speed. Of course Chautauqua will find his feet and settle at the rear as is his pattern. The speed should be good, so being back should not be a disadvantage.

This is dangerous but I’m going to count out Peniaphobia and Not Listenin’Tome after their trip to Dubai. Not many of the locals seem to come back in top form after that and it’s been a happy formula to lay those that do. Aerovelocity has had a set back leading in and on top of that draws the wide gate. It’s unfortunate he’s had the issues he’s had and has been forced to miss work. Trainer Paul O’Sullivan would love another three weeks to bring him to the top of his game (and if he was at the top of his game he’d be my tip).

So off the good pace expect Lucky Bubbles to kick home and be very prominent in the finish. The same can be said for The Wizardofoz and Gold-Fun, who does sprint well fresh. However expect Chautauqua to finish over the top of them all and take the prize for Team Hawkes.

My stabs: Chautauqua, Lucky Bubbles, The Wizardofoz and Buffering

CHAMPIONS MILE

No need to over analyse this. Maurice gets a gun run mid-field and wins. Giant Treasure, Beauty Only and Contentment to run the places.

BOW CREEK, BUFFERING AND SAFETY CHECK 30.04.2016