An unusual mixed card at Sha Tin tonight gives Happy Valley's woebegone surface a break and punters can try their luck on dirt or turf with Diamond King likely to command attention in the fourth event.
Despite the less-than-enthralling prospect of a hike to Sha Tin for a midweek night meeting, the few that the Jockey Club does programme for the New Territories venue generally hold up when it comes to attendance.
The Class Three fourth event looks one of the more open and competitive races and is on the dirt before switching to turf for the final three on the seven-event card.
Dirt basically demands that horses have the pace to be able to lie up on the speed. It is not a surface where too many can come from a long way off the pace and win.
What makes the fourth event of interest is the fact that there are a number involved who could take to the surface while others are already proven on it.
Diamond King can readily muster pace and is a winner on dirt and over the 1,650-metre trip, so he is sure to figure prominently in punters' calculations.
