The Listed MRC Blue Diamond Preview (1000m) last month featured just five runners, but the Group III MRC Blue Diamond Prelude (1100m) on Saturday looks a lot more competitive with six winning colts engaged in the field of nine - is there a future stallion in the mix?
Godolphin’s Daumier (Epaulette) and the Team Hawkes trained Semillion (Shalaa (IRE) are both stakes-winners on debut, the former winning the Blue Diamond Preview and the latter taking the $400,000 Inglis Banner in the spring.
Both of those races were run at 1000m and both colts are drawn next to each other in gates three and four.
Counttheheadlights (I Am invincible), Lofty Strike (Snitzel) and Jacquinot (Rubick) have all won impressively on debut last month in metro races with the latter put up as favourite for this race after drawing gate one.
Philosopher (Zoustar) won his debut at Caulfield last month and was favourite for the Blue Diamond Preview, but could only finish third so will need to improve sharply.