Freshman trainer Richard Gibson has made a fabulous fist of rehabilitating lesser lights, but tomorrow takes him into a different arena as he turns towards feature racing and two four-year-olds he has imported for their classic season.
Beauty Lead (Centenary Vase) and Helene Fun Star (Crocus Handicap) have made one appearance locally when not a great deal was expected, but with a run under the belt they should present a better guide to where they are going. Beauty Lead, a Group Three winner and Group Two second in France at three, got a pass mark when seventh to Business As Usual over 1,600 metres first time out and Gibson admits he is on a learning curve going into the Group Three Centenary Vase at Sha Tin.
'On his best French form, he'd be the one to beat with the light weight. While he has improved for the first run, he is going to come on for this one, too,' said Gibson (pictured).
With so many four-year-olds looking to get racing into their legs in preparation for the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby next month, Gibson is strangely enough the only trainer to have taken this particular path to the classic. Jacobee was an unlucky third in the Centenary Vase last year before finishing a solid Derby fourth and Plastic Polymer (2007) was 11th in the Derby after winning the Vase.
However, the two four-year-olds to win the Vase when it was run at 2,000m - Vengeance Of Rain (2005) and Industrial Pioneer (2001) - also went on to win the Derby.
'I know it's a tough call taking on the older horses, but getting 20 pounds off Pure Champion is a lot of weight so I thought we could take our chance,' Gibson said.