“I THINK he will improve from today and he is obviously the one to beat going into the AJC (Australian) Derby,” said trainer Mick Price after his Victoria Derby winner Tarzino had just unpicked a 14-horse Rosehill Guineas field to land the 2,000 metre Group 1 by nearly two lengths.

Chasing him home was the Road To Rock gelding Montaigne and the Myboycharlie filly Jameka, herself the favourite for the Australian Oaks on April 9th. Bought for A$60,000 at the Magic Millions, the Tavistock gelding, bought into by Rosemount Stud is looking irrepressible for the April 2nd Australian Derby where he is as short as $1.90.

“He is a really good colt,” added Price. “We tried to win a Caulfield Guineas and got stuck in traffic, we tried to win an Australian Guineas and he bombed the start, but he is just a really good colt. He has a great set of lungs on him, he has a big aggressive colt attitude about him and he is a great horse to train.”

Ridden by Craig Newitt, the veteran of 31 Group 1 wins believes Tarzino could become his best.

“He’s a stayer with a brilliant turn of foot and I genuinely think he can become the best horse I’ve ridden,” said Newitt.

“He toyed with them today, all we were waiting on was a gap and when it came there was no stopping him.”

Victorian trainer David Brideoake, a former captain of the Australian show jumping team, landed a successful Sydney raid over the weekend to take The Galaxy with his Good Journey mare, Griante.

It was Brideoake’s second Group 1 win as Griante, eighth in the Oakleigh Plate at her previous start, sneaked into the 16-horse field as second emergency for the 1,100 metre sprint. “We bred her, so she has been with us all along,” said Brideoake. “It’s a great day and it’s so good to win a big race on a day like this.”

Second in was the Zariz gelding Shiraz with the Mossman gelding Dothraki taking third.

THE UNITED STATES

Formerly trained by Aidan O’Brien to a Group 3 KPMG Enterprise (Kilternan) Stakes win in 2013, The United States began to fulfil his potential with a Group 1 win in the Ranvet Stakes at the same meeting.

The Irish-bred Galileo six-year-old, now owned by Lloyd and Nick Williams and trained by Robert Heathcote, came from behind in a slowly run race to win by almost a over the Reset gelding Hauraki and the Sebring enitre Criterion.

“We came here quietly confident that he would run really well,” said jockey Kerrin McEvoy, whilst Nick Williams looked towards the spring: “He will be in the paddock on Monday and off the strength of that I would suggest he will be on a Cox Plate campaign.”