The Hawkes trained pair of Adolescence and Aquiver looked set to be fighting out the finish at the 250 metre mark before the in form Pat Carey trained gelding knuckled down over the concluding stages for what turned out to be an impressive Group race win.

At the post the four-year-old son of Regal Classic had down the Brendan Fenech mount Adolescence by a long neck, while the runner-up’s stablemate Aquiver was nearly two lengths away in third place.

The win continued a one hundred percent record when the gelding races in the presence of his breeder and owner Tony Chotiprasiddahi.

"It’s great to see the horse win for Tony and he has now seen him race three times and he’s won every time," winning trainer Pat Carey said after the success.

Thailand based Chotiprasiddhi has well known bloodstock agent Bryan Muschialli to thank for his ongoing success with Thong Classic among others.

"The horses are kept at Bryan’s property near Pakenham and I really have to thank him a lot for making it all possible," an exciting Chotiprasiddahi said.

Surprisingly today was Thong Classic’s first stakes win, but he did it in a style that would suggest he was already a stakes star. Before today the gelding’s best result had probably been his strong second to the boom stayer Fields of Omagh in the Group Three Eclipse Stakes at Sandown in November.

Carey has little doubt the gelding would be well suit at distances of "at least a mile and a half" but he had been impressed with his performances over the shorter trips.

"He always just seems to run so well. I can even remember when he finished not far down the straight at Flemington over the Carnival behind Belle du Jour," Carey said with a smile. "He just runs well all of the time. He’s quite an amazing horse."

The winning trainer confirmed after the race the "late starter"had been kept in the field for last year’s Caulfield Cup "for a long time" but at the time the gelding wasn’t quite ready for the 2400 metres of that feature event.

"We didn’t give him the right preparation really for the Caulfield Cup last year."

The Lawson pair of Rum (trainer by Dean who finished fourth) and Soviet Draw (prepared by Dean’s father Ray in fifth) both raced well just behind the placegetters finishing the race off well.

Rum, who is yet to finish first past the post in a race (he got the G3 SA St Leger after the original winner returned a positive swab), is being aimed at further riches in Adelaide.

"We’ll push him on to the Adelaide Cup," Lawson said.

But it won’t be the usual preparation for potential runners in the Morphettville two miler. Lawson revealed he may have to send the gelding north before heading west.

"There really aren’t the races here to get him right before heading to Adelaide. We may have to even send him to have a race in Sydney," Lawson reported.

While favourite punters were cheering home Thong Classic ($3.20), the supporters of Native Jazz ($13) and Zero Drama ($17) were disappointed when their charges finished fourteenth and last respectively.

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