Multiple Group One winner Mr Brightside has been a flagbearer for Lindsay Park in recent years, and trainers Ben, Will and JD Hayes are hoping he can replicate his past feats this spring.

The Kiwi-bred rising eight-year-old recorded his ninth victory at elite-level in autumn when taking out the Gr.1 Futurity Stakes (1400m) before heading to Hong Kong in April where he tailed the field home in the Gr.1 Champions Mile (1600m) at Sha Tin.

He has returned to Melbourne in fine fettle and his trainers have been pleased with his progress ahead of the spring.

“He looks fantastic,” Ben Hayes told Racing.com. “Compared to this time in the last couple of years, he looks more forward than he has. He has the best coat he probably has had. He’s working great and working out beautifully.”

The son of Bullbars is set to tackle the Gr.1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) first-up at Caulfield next month, a race he won in 2023, before shooting for his third Gr.1 Makye Diva Stakes (1600m) crown at Flemington a fortnight later.

"They are the two races set in stone for him. We'll work out where he goes after that," Hayes said.

The stable is also excited about the prospects of fellow New Zealand-bred gelding Evaporate, who is set to kick-off his season with a tilt at the Gr.2 PB Lawrence Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on August 16.

The son of Per Incanto had a pleasing three-year-old term, winning four consecutive races last spring, including the Gr.2 Stutt Stakes (1600m) before placing in the Gr.1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m). He was then test at weight-for-age for the first time in the Gr.1 Cox Plate (2040m) where he finished last.

He resumed this year with a placing in the Gr.2 Autumn Stakes (1400m) and subsequently returned to his homeland where he finished runner-up in the inaugural running of the A$3.5 million NZB Kiwi (1500m), and he signed off in winning form when taking out the Gr.3 Carbine Club Stakes (1600m) at Randwick in April.

“He’s one of the more exciting horses in our stable,” Hayes said. “He’s very untapped, he had a lot of bad luck last preparation.

“I’m really happy with him. He’s grown really well and he should have a big spring.

“Evaporate trialled very well on Friday. He looks to have come back very well and he will have another trial on August 4.”

The A$10 million Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill on November 1 will be his main aim, but Hayes hasn’t ruled out another tilt at the Cox Plate.