A shot at the first major two-year-old prize of the season is on the line for Clevadude when the highly-rated colt runs at Moonee Valley on Saturday.
Clevadude, an outstanding debut winner at Cranbourne earlier this month, has a tight grip on favouritism in the Sportingbet Plate (1000m), a race in which only two of the seven runners have race form.
And to add a touch of confusion, two of the unraced division are from the powerful Peter Snowden team.
But trainer Rick Hore-Lacy, who has made a habit of turning his best two-year-olds into top stallions, believes his colt is up to the job.
"His win at Cranbourne was everything I hoped for and he's gone along nicely since," Hore-Lacy said.
"I said at the time that he'd have to win at Moonee Valley for him to go to the Magic Millions race, and that's still the case."
The Magic Millions Classic, a race for two-year-olds who were sold at the Magic Millions sale a year earlier, is run at the Gold Coast on January 12.
Snowden will run Address, a colt by Commands from the three-time winner Amitola and Iberia, a filly by New Approach from Albaicin, a winner of two races by Redoute's Choice.
Also among the seven runners is the first starter, The Yowie, a David Hayes-trained colt by Redoute's Choice out of the high-speed filly I Got Chills.
One of the most competitive events on the Valley card is shaping as the City Jeep Handicap (1600m) in which each of the nine three-year-olds entered has claims.
But as he often does, premier trainer Peter Moody has a strong hand with Quick Snitzel and Medvedev, both last-start winners who are expected to dominate the betting.