[06-Jan-2026: LinkedIn] Lion Selection’s Hedley Widdup has highlighted Medallion Metals as one of the standout resource stocks to watch in 2026, with the commentary syndicated nationally via News Corp’s mastheads.
Widdup points to several catalysts underpinning Medallion’s momentum:
A clear pathway to production: The proposed acquisition of the Forrestania process plant positions Medallion to treat gold–copper ore from Ravensthorpe, targeting first metal in late 2026.
Leverage to record gold prices: Transitioning into the producer cohort during a strong gold cycle offers significant upside as derisking continues to be rewarded by the market.
District-scale upside at Forrestania: The 900km² tenure package has been nickel-focused for ~20 years, despite being data-rich and largely untested for gold since prices were ~$500/oz — presenting meaningful exploration optionality.
A strengthened balance sheet, a development-ready asset base and a district-scale growth platform put Medallion in a compelling position heading into 2026.
Read more: https://loom.ly/cf8qvp4
Source: https://www.linkedin.com/company/medallion-metals-limited/posts/?feedView=all
Hedley's Lion Selection Group (LSX) holds MM8, BTR & STN (MM8 is mentioned above and all 3 are mentioned below) - see here for what LSX holds: https://strawman.com/reports/LSX/all
Disclosure: I do not currently hold MM8, BTR or STN - they're on a watchlist and I did hold MM8 briefly in 2025 and BTR briefly in 2024. I currently prefer other plays in the sector myself but Hedley has a very good track record of picking and backing winners.
Excerpt:
Hedley Widdup – Lion Selection Group
Best commodity pick or theme
2025 has been the year of gold, and I think 2026 will be a good year for gold again, but I don’t think the eye-watering performance is a template for what to expect. Gold is well supported by central bank buying which keeps the market tight, there isn’t an expansion of gold supply in sight so as long as investors around the world are more buyers than sellers, that bodes well for gold.
It is really hard to look past copper for a strong fundamental. I am dumbfounded by the extent to which AI is proliferating, and the rapid deployment of data centres adds a lot of demand in a short time.
I think a positive gold market and strong copper market will continue to attract investor interest to the mining and commodity space. So a key theme will be this liquidity spreading out into the junior space, helping small companies perform.
Worst commodity pick or theme
I think 2026 will be the year that we see supply catch up with demand for the small market and perched new production markets within the criticals. Most at risk in my mind is antimony, which has been rushed by investors and for good reason.
In 2026 we’ll see rubber hit the road from the largest new contributor to iron ore supply ex-Pilbara under Chinese ownership, (Simandou) out of Guinea in West Africa. I don’t think this will crash the market, but in an era where the US are squabbling with China over REEs, uranium is supported by ETF type buying and non-hydrocarbon power generation growth, and copper is tight as a drum – I think iron ore will miss out.
Stocks to watch in 2026
The high beta we've seen in gold companies will be less significant in 2026. I don't think we'll see producers re-rated as fearsomely. However, the strong run in gold has enabled strong fundraising which has set up a bunch of developers to deliver in 2026.
Medallion Metals (ASX:MM8) are set for a huge 2026. They look set to take possession of a process plant at Forrestania where they can process gold/copper ore from Ravensthorpe, which (could) see them make first metal late in 2026 and this elevation to producer status will expose them to record high gold prices. Derisking is usually rewarded, but this environment is super charged. They have a wild card too. The Forrestania plant comes with over 900km2 of tenure, which for the last 20 years at least has only been explored for nickel
Here is a large position that is data rich, but no gold mined since the price was only moving through $500/ounce. I’d wager there is some pretty interesting stuff (with respect to gold) that could be brought to bear.
Brightstar Resources (ASX:BTR) has consolidated the Sandstone greenstone belt, with the last move completed recently with the scheme of arrangement for Aurumin. This belt has produced over 4Moz of gold historically, but it's been dormant in the “modern era”. That same modern era has shown that when well mineralised belts are drilled, they remain productive. Get set for 2026 as the secrets of Sandstone begin to be revealed, including a PFS over the resources that have been established between former junior owners, which are all open and now owned by Brightstar.
Saturn Metals (ASX:STN) has had a big 2025. Saturn is the lowest grade gold company on ASX, which has seen many investors turn their noses up. But it looks like Saturn is beginning to be recognised for its immense ounce position (2Moz in reserve by Christmas) and has found some high-grade accumulations.
I think the value in Saturn, which in my mind is still discounted more than peers of similar inventory size, is only just beginning to be recognised and I think 2026 will be a year the market begins to appreciate the bulk economics that are available for a big, fat orebody and heap leach processing.
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Source: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/stockhead/news/merry-stocksmas-twelve-resources-experts-give-us-their-best-stocks-for-2026-part-2/news-story/05d8222e5064511206b5cebe06f68714
