Honest Magic Temple is going far better than his form suggests and with a drop to Class Four and a return to his preferred all-weather surface he looks an absolute stand out in the middle leg of tomorrow's Triple Trio at Sha Tin.
With the TT being only partially won last Sunday, the prize on offer is expected to reach $15 million and the Sean Woods-trained gelding looks a ready-made banker from an inside gate with Douglas Whyte taking over the reins.
The last time the six-year-old raced in this class, Whyte jumped on board for the first time and the pair went on to score a narrow win over capable all-weather track performer Cenamira after being given every chance in the run.
While Magic Temple has struggled to fill a place in seven subsequent runs in Class Three, the way he has been hitting the line in the unsuitable events show him to be going extremely well.
At his last outing over 1,200 metres on the artificial surface, the Slavic gelding found the tempo too sharp and settled with the tailenders, but closed off impressively in the final stages to be beaten just over four lengths by Winning Success.
From gate four this time, Whyte should have Magic Temple poised to pounce turning for home and he looks to have a bit too much class for his rivals.