Punters who pinned their faith to Paul O'Sullivan-trained Jolly Jolly on Thursday at Sha Tin never really looked like collecting,but his second to runaway sprinter Fabulous One made him a black booker for the near future.
Fabulous One controlled the race in the lead then ran strong sectionals from the 800m to the 400m then even quicker down the home straight to give nothing else a show, and the only horse to find the line better than him was the runner-up.
To some, that performance from a short-priced favourite - beaten three and a half lengths - might be a little disappointing, but O'Sullivan's horses generally improve with racing and this return looks an ideal platform to go to a new level next time he runs.
Jolly Jolly has only ever run at 1,200m but his races last season and again on Thursday have given the impression that Jolly Jolly isn't a pure short course sprinter, either, and 1,400m will definitely suit him better.
Class Five winner House Of Luck had run his best previous races at Happy Valley and showed that he is worth following even up a grade at either track after strolling home with the opening race on Thursday.
But one of those chasing air home behind him, Holy Star, also looks a horse to follow - and he will be staying in the cellar class. Having his first start for David Hall, Holy Star had looked in good form at the trials, was heavily backed in the final minutes before the race and didn't let anyone down even if he didn't win.
The son of Holy Roman Emperor, whose stock have made such a great mark here, had not impressed in eight prior starts and gave away a big start to the front-running winner, but closed his race off strongly to pull three lengths off House Of Luck and get past the body of the field to just miss second placing by a nose.
He gave every impression that he'll handle a mile on this effort and Holy Star's form turnaround for the new yard should see him able to win one shortly.
