Consistent rather than spectacular, placing third in each of his last two starts without getting his head in front, though he was doing the donkey work in front on both occasions before being caught. The red jacket has a reasonable record in this grade and he's shown a clear liking for racing on the rails, which pairs well with an inside draw. Not the quickest in this field but not far off it either, sitting just behind the pace leaders on the clock. Respected by the ratings and could easily reverse recent form if he gets the run of the race from the rail, though he needs to find a little extra to get all the way to the line this time.

Form has dipped over the last two starts, beaten a long way when bumped at the first bend most recently after being checked the run before — two races where trouble in running has masked his true form. The white jacket is the strongest draw in this grade at Newcastle by some distance, winning close to a quarter of the time, which is a big structural plus. His trainer's record in these conditions is only moderate, and the clock says he's not among the pace leaders in this field even accounting for the traffic. Up against it on today's numbers, though the best box in the race and a recent history of being unlucky mean he shouldn't be written off entirely.

Mixed recent form — a big eyecatcher two starts back when leading and running on well despite racing wide throughout, but that was sandwiched between a heavily bumped run and a below-par effort last time. The striped jacket has the weakest record of any box in this grade at Newcastle, which is a genuine hurdle from the widest draw. Shows good early pace when he gets a clean break, but his tendency to race wide is a real handicap at a track where interference is common. Has it to do on the ratings from the least productive box, though the eyecatching effort in the middle of his last three shows there's ability there when things fall right.