Lindsay Park is looking to one of their three-year-olds extending their winning run as another attempts a return to form when the pair meets at Moonee Valley.
The Ben, Will and JD Hayes -trained Zestiman and The Showvinist will line up against each other in the Dominant Handicap (1000m) at The Valley on Saturday.
Both horses were taken to Moonee Valley on Tuesday morning for a gallop and Ben Hayes said the pair got a lot of benefit from heading to the inner-city track.
“They both went nicely, and it was good for them to go there and have a look before racing there,” Hayes said.
The Showvinist is looking to extend his winning streak to three after wins on the synthetic track at Pakenham after being beaten on debut on the synthetic track at Ballarat on debut.
“He’s been quite progressive and his past couple of wins have been quite dominant,” Hayes said.
“His three runs have been on the synthetic tracks and it’s just the way it has worked out for him.
“We thought he would go close on debut, but he got beaten, so we placed him easy, and he was able to win, and then last start it was a pretty strong (benchmark) 64.
“We like him, he does everything right. He’s drawn a good barrier, and he makes his own luck, so that should suit The Valley.”
Hayes is expecting Saturday’s Valley contest to be slightly easier for Zestiman after he resumed with a moderate eighth up the straight at Flemington on July 20.
Zestiman showed a touch of class in the autumn, winning on debut at Flemington before heading to Sydney and finishing fifth in the Inglis Millennium at Randwick.
The colt wound up his autumn campaign in the Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield.
“He was a pass mark first-up, but he probably needed the run a bit,” Hayes said.
“Hopefully we’ll see that improvement after that run and his gallop as he’s got the ability.
“He didn’t quite measure up in the Blue Diamond, but his run in the Millennium up in Sydney was good and he’s coming back as a three-year-old, so hopefully we’ll see a better run this time.”