Stunned horse racing figures have expressed shock and surprise following the murder of former trainer and colourful owner Les Samba who was gunned down on a busy Melbourne street on Sunday night.Samba, 60, had links with an accused Sydney murderer and Melbourne underworld figures but is not believed to have been under investigation himself.Police said he was shot dead after arriving for a meeting on the Beaconsfield Pde beachfront at Middle Park, a few kilometres from the Melbourne CBD, on Sunda

Stunned horse racing figures have expressed shock and surprise following the murder of former trainer and colourful owner Les Samba who was gunned down on a busy Melbourne street on Sunday night.

Samba, 60, had links with an accused Sydney murderer and Melbourne underworld figures but is not believed to have been under investigation himself.

Police said he was shot dead after arriving for a meeting on the Beaconsfield Pde beachfront at Middle Park, a few kilometres from the Melbourne CBD, on Sunday night.

They said he had been seen running along the roadside before being shot in the head and body near a car he had earlier driven to the scene.

Samba had been in Melbourne for the Premier Yearling Sales which began at Oaklands Junction on Monday.

A big spender at sales around the country for many years, Samba and his family had owned several top-class racehorses.

At the sales on Monday, reaction to his death was muted.

Trainer David Hayes described him as a "colourful" character.

"I trained for him, I thought he was a good bloke," Hayes said.

Others said Samba was regarded as a good judge of horseflesh and were unaware of any reason he would have been killed.

Samba owned several horses in partnership with accused murderer Ron Medich, including Sea Lord and Defiant Dame, who is due to run at Warwick Farm on Saturday.

Medich was last year charged with murdering and soliciting to murder Sydney property developer Michael McGurk and is currently on bail.

Samba had also been mentioned in connection with a prominent Melbourne criminal with close connections to the racing industry.

He was a former father-in-law of successful jockey Danny Nikolic, who had been married to his daughter Victoria.

Detective Inspector John Potter from the Homicide Squad says police believe Samba had parked and locked his car, a 2010 silver Hyundai sedan with NSW registration plates, in the street to attend a meeting.

"We believe the victim went to Middle Park to attend some form of meeting," he told reporters on Monday.

"By all appearances he has gone there willingly.

"Based on the information we currently have, we don't believe it's a random shooting."

An altercation between the victim and another man is understood to have preceded the shooting before Samba was seen running in an attempt to escape.

Police are hunting a man in his mid-20s to mid-30s last seen running into Langridge Street, wearing dark clothing and a dark-coloured hat.

He also had light-coloured hair, possibly a wig, protruding from the hat.

Det Insp Potter said police had not yet ruled out links with the underworld.

They want to speak to three people thought to have been near a dark-coloured Mercedes sedan parked near the crime scene and anyone who saw the Hyundai.

Samba trained with moderate success in Adelaide but had lived in Sydney for many years.

Before he took out his trainer's licence he worked for well-known Adelaide trainer Mick Robins and strapped the dual Melbourne Cup winner Rain Lover.

He had success with the 2006 Victoria Derby runner-up Gorky Park but Samba was best known in recent times for his skill in selecting young horses at yearling sales.

One of them was the outstanding Thorn Park who won the 2004 Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap and now stands at stud in New Zealand.

More recently he bid $250,000 for the colt Flying Pegasus who raced in the names of his daughter and Medich.

His wife Deidre was once listed among the owners of another top-flight galloper, Shogun Lodge.