Contentment wasn't quite up to winning in international Group One class but he was far from disgraced in the Hong Kong Mile and comes back to something easier in the Group Three Chinese Club Challenge Cup (1,400m) at Sha Tin today.

The traditional New Year's Day feature race is usually won by an up-and-comer tossed in at the weights or as a consolation for a beaten runner from international day and John Size-trained Contentment (Joao Moreira) falls into the second category nowadays.

His fifth in the Hong Kong Mile was sound enough without excuse and he comes back to 1,400m, over which he is unbeaten in four attempts, but the test for him in handicap conditions today is the 132 pounds in the saddle.

Size has won the race three times and trained the last horse to carry such a weight when Grand Delight scored in 2003 over 1,200m, and then claimed Group Ones at his next three starts to be champion sprinter for that season.

Contentment has picked his way through the classes without having to carry much weight most of the time and not since Class Four has he had to deal with this kind of impost.

Still, his great tactical ability should assist him in that, with Moreira able to give Contentment a soft run right up on what shapes as only a modest pace.

From gate three Multivictory (Howard Cheng Yue-tin) should find the front early with Secret Sham (Douglas Whyte), drawn immediately to his outside, and Super Lifeline (Richard Fourie) four gates wider, probably also pushing up.

Then it becomes a question of whether anyone wants to run them along or is happy to just have a forward position and the pace could drop right out of this quite quickly if no rider goes on with it.

Contentment meanwhile, although coming back in distance, will be right there with them early but likely dropping into a handy trail.

His main rival, Packing Pins (Zac Purton) is fresh after no race for six weeks and coming back in trip doesn't look his issue but the nine barrier is if the race plays out as it maps and he could be caught wide.

So Moreira and Size look to have the edge but lightweights should never be ignored in these Group Threes and down in the handicaps, Multivictory is certainly a threat.

He has missed the first four only three times over 1,400m in 12 tries, his latest win over 1,600m then a second to Sun Jewellery at this trip looks very sound form and he will give them something to chase in front.