LONDON – Soft Falling Rain looks the class act in the Betfred Hungerford Stakes at Newbury on Saturday.

The South African raider has been based in England for quite some time now, but Mike de Kock has finally been convinced to go to the well in Berkshire.

De Kock has been keen to stress Soft Falling Rain will not be fully fired up for this Group Two over 1400m – but he might not need to be.

Soft Falling Rain at Abington Place, Newmarket.

The four-year-old son of National Assembly is unbeaten in seven starts, with his finest hour to date arriving at Meydan in March, when he beat a solid field in the Group Two Godolphin Mile.

Soft Falling Rain has bags of pace though, so this drop in trip will not be in issue. Although his fitness must be taken on trust, De Kock’s patient approach with the Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum-owned colt can be rewarded in what hardly looks a vintage renewal.