Splendid Star kept his unbeaten record intact with a battling victory in the ninth race, but behind him there was less obvious 'Star' appeal from fourth-placed Night Star. The David Oughton-trained six-year-old showed his first glimpse of real form as he ran home well under Howard Cheng to finish only two lengths behind the highly rated winner in the 1,200-metre contest.
Night Star has clearly taken time to find his feet in Hong Kong following his arrival from England, where he was a high-class sprinter when known as Night Shot. Among a host of consistent performances was a fourth place in the Group One Nunthorpe Stakes at York over 1,000 metres, and if he can recapture that sort of form he would be a very interesting candidate here.
He has dropped rapidly in the ratings to a mark of 37 in the wake of his disappointing form since joining Oughton, and off that sort of rating he would be a good proposition if he keeps going the right way from this promising run.
