Coolmore-Ballydoyle got a perfect result in London's Old Bailey yesterday, and there will be high hopes of another success in Hong Kong tomorrow morning when Kieren Fallon's old friend Dylan Thomas starts a hot favourite to end his racing career on a high in the $1.8 million (€1.2million) Vase.
The mile and a half contest is one of four races on an international festival card that totals almost $8 million (€5.5million) in prizemoney and which can be seen "almost live" after a brief delay on attheraces.
Fallon's perfect Christmas present comes too late for him to get back on either Dylan Thomas and the Mile contender Excellent Art, so John Murtagh will be on board both colts who will attempt to put Aidan O'Brien on a very exclusive list.
Dermot Weld's 1991 Bowl success with Additional Risk, and Jim Bolger's 2004 Cup victory with Alexander Goldrun, remain the only Irish victories at this meeting, although Additional Risk's rider, Mick Kinane, a legendary figure in the former colony, has a fine personal record through the years on which he will hope to build with three more rides tomorrow.
With champion jockey Pat Smullen also in action in the Sprint on the Prix de l'Abbaye winner Benbuan, there is significant Irish interest, although most of it will centre on Dylan Thomas, who is rated as low as 5 to 4 favourite to win his fourth Group One of the year before retiring to stud.
The Arc and King George hero is rated well clear of his opposition, which includes France's Doctor Dino and Quitano from Germany.
There are understandable concerns about this being Dylan Thomas's 10th start of a long year, but O'Brien said: "He appears to be in good form and I've been delighted with his work. He's an amazing horse, so we're hoping."
Excellent Art could have a tougher job in the Mile where his opposition includes the star French filly Darjina. But the local team could strike back in the Cup where Godolphin's Ramonti will be a familiar name on this side of the world.
Vengeance Of Rain and Viva Pataca are two high-class Hong Kong horses, however, and Viva Pataca is expected to make a bold challenge to win and provide Kinane with a fourth top-flight victory on the horse.
At home, there may be long-term Cheltenham festival hints galore at Navan today where Tony McCoy will team up with a number of JP McManus-owned horses, including Aranleigh, who will hope to cement his position at the top of the Ballymore Properties Novice Hurdle betting with a win over two and a half miles.
Tony Mullins's high-class bumper horse only just scraped home on his jumping debut, and while improvement is expected today, he will do well to collar Woodbine Willie, another smart bumper horse who was very impressive on his own first start over jumps.
Perce Rock has reportedly schooled well ahead of his debut over fences in the novice chase and McCoy's mount could be the one to beat the County Hurdle winner Pedrobob.
The opening maiden hurdle will take a bit of winning as the Punchestown bumper champion Mick The Man will try to make it third time lucky over jumps against good opposition that includes Forpaddytheplasterer and Colm Murphy's The Wandering Man.
Murphy is a famously good judge, and his high opinion of The Wandering Man makes his claims hard to ignore.
The bumper also looks a good race, although there was enough in Limestone Cowboy's course debut to suggest the Bowe production line of smart staying horses is far from finished yet.
