Following the "king of the dirt", Frenchman Olivier Doleuze, and banking on Richard Gibson's course specialist Turin Pearl can help break open a jackpot-boosted Triple Trio at Sha Tin on Wednesday night.
Doleuze will take his all-weather expertise to Dubai on Saturday when he rides Rich Tapestry for Michael Chang Chun-wai in the US$2 million Golden Shaheen at Meydan - and while an all-dirt meeting in New Territories is a long way from the glitz and glamour of World Cup night, the flamboyant rider will be keen to keep his form on non-turf surfaces.
Doleuze has always had an affinity with Sha Tin's all-weather track and he already has six wins on the tricky circuit so far this season, with a deadly strike rate of just under 20 per cent. He is ranked second amongst the jockeys on the dirt this season, only one win behind Zac Purton, and two of those wins were on Turin Pearl, including the impressive last-start success.
Gibson kept Turin Pearl on the all-weather at 1,200m in each of the four-year-old's six starts this term, and the gelding has either run well or had excuses when unplaced - and each time he has been well-supported.
This time he faces some stiffer opposition, carrying more weight, but he can account for his Class Three rivals from a good draw. Gate three gives Doleuze options, and drawing any lower than that has been statistically a disadvantage in recent times.
A horse that always seems to draw low, and does again in gate two - but gets on to the dirt for the first time - is John Size-trained Access Years (Joao Moreira). He is one of the major threats among the top weights getting into the race under the 85-60 ratings band. He goes in along with 82-rated Smart Man (Karis Teetan), a promising type who has not won since his first run for John Moore, but has been reasonably consistent since.
Also include lightweight chance Master Kochanwong (Matthew Chadwick) - the smart son of Commands trialled well on the dirt, then ran reasonably again two starts back on the circuit. He gets sheepskin cheek pieces on and can figure. In a race with plenty of knockout place chances, Regency Luck (Keith Yeung Ming-lun) is also worth consideration.
After last Wednesday's blowout result in the TT, punters will be chasing an HK$8 million-plus jackpot, expected to deliver a HK$14 million dividend - but to get a slice of the pie, the two legs bookending the bet will be hard to get through.
The first leg is a Class Four over 1,650m, with a 60-35 ratings band, with no obvious standout to lean on as banker. Verdane (Gerald Mosse) had trialled and raced on the track like he will win there, and is a tentative top pick. Benno Yung Tin-pang's Tai Po Fortune (Teetan) also goes in - his only start on the track was a good effort, albeit in Class Five, and he has not been disgraced in two runs since going up in grade. Another Gibson-Doleuze runner, Xilai Xianzi, has dropped a long way in the ratings, has won previously on the all-weather and has some claims. El Grande (Vincent Ho Chak-yiu) and Good Thinker (Andreas Suborics) are also chances, but are disadvantaged by bad draws.
The final leg looks even harder - a Class Three over 1,800m with a ratings band of 80-55 - where again it is Doleuze who can provide the banker in the form of Michael Chang Chun-wai's Buddy Buddies.
Buddy Buddies' last two runs have been solid efforts over the extended mile on the track, and he should get the extra ground. Also include Ole Ole (Alex Lai Hoi-wing), Green Manner (Mosse) and Riyadh (Purton).
