Mr Showman is all flash and fire

Like his name does seem to suggest, Mr Showman is a flashy, flamboyant type.

He commands attention and you are drawn to him.

Like yesterday morning on the training track, clockers were impressed with his work and, in nearly all notebooks, his name was circled in red with the comment: Must Follow.

And why not?

Mr Showman was an impressive performer, clocking 37.8sec for 600m. His galloping partner, Eight Ball, matched him stride for stride and looked in tip-top condition, too.

John Powell did the work on Eight Ball, while Matthew Kellady was astride Mr Showman.

Mr Showman would have built up a sizeable fan base when opening his Kranji account early last month.

That day, when ridden by Ruan Maia, he blitzed his rivals over the 1,200m trip, leading from go to whoa and pulling up with a couple of lengths to spare. You could say, that victory was overdue and quite expected.

After all, he had, just a run previous, finished a close second to Lim's Bestbreaker. Before that, he collected prize money for finishing third to Unsung Hero in an Open Maiden contest over the flying 1,000m on the Poly.

A son of Showcasing, Mr Showman is going places at Kranji and trainer Shane Baertschiger has found a good Class 4 race for him this Saturday. It is now a matter of him bringing that excellent track form to the races.

As for Eight Ball, he did not roll along in his debut, finishing last under Kellady over 1,200m on turf.

Kellady was at a loss to explain the performance of his mount and a vet check revealed no abnormality.

Just a three-year-old, Eight Ball is better than that last race suggested. Indeed, it was at a trial on New Year's Eve that he came, saw and conquered.

Kellady made sure of it, and although his time of 61.63sec for the 1,000m was "ordinary", it sent out a message that he was ready to put a "1" beside his name.

Eight Ball is down to contest the "Open Maiden" over 1,100m on the Poly on Saturday. In the form he is in, it looks like a winnable sort of race.

Also in action at the training track yesterday morning was Karisto. He had apprentice Iskandar Rosman doing the steering when running 600m in 37.3sec.

It was a good piece of work. At the finish, Karisto had pulled away from his galloping partner - the Colonial Chief Stakes winner, Super Dynasty.

From trainer Lee Freedman's yard, Karisto has just one win to show from 18 starts. But, on six occasions, the chestnut has picked up minor money for finishing second.

It's noteworthy that one of those runner-up spots was when he lost out to Grand Koonta in a blanket finish in a Class 1 race in September.

That day, he carried 47kg - a feather on his back. He must hump 59kg in Saturday's Kranji Stakes C race over the mile.

It is quite a load, but we have a string of talented claimers who will be more than willing to take the ride.

If presented with the ride by the godfather of racing, it will be an offer they will not refuse.