Your Song dispatched frontrunner Rain Affair at the 200-meter mark and powered clear over his elders to a dominant five-length victory in the Aus$500,000 Bundaberg Distilling Co. BTC Cup (Aus-I) May 11 at Eagle Farm.
The track was downgraded to heavy after day-long rain showers, but the 3-year-old Fastnet Rock colt looked to relish the testing conditions. He shook free on the outside of multiple group winner Rain Affair, who led off the home turn, in a strong performance with two-time stakes winner Better Than Ready 1 1/4 lengths back in third.
Your Song crossed the finish line with ears pricked, covering 1,200 meters (about six furlongs) under Peter Robl in 1:11.27 while earning his first stakes win at the group I level for Eduardo Cojuangco's Gooree Park Stud.
Buffering, the 5-2 favorite, missed the start and had to race wide as he made a valiant effort to reach contention coming off the turn. He ultimately finished fourth in the 11-horse field as he tried for a breakthrough victory.
Your Song injured a fetlock when finishing third in a group II stakes last October at Randwick in his previous start, but was in fine fettle for the BTC Cup; trainer Anthony Cummings scratched him from a benchmark 80 race at Rosehill because he felt the colt had a genuine chance of winning the group I event in spite of concerns about the deep ground.
"The rain before the race made me wonder if he would handle it, but Peter rode him positively from the gates and the horse did the rest," Cummings told Australia's Associated Press.
Your Song is the 13th group I winner for Coolmore resident Fastnet Rock, who currently ranks second on Australia's general sire list.
"He's a beautiful animal with a beautiful attitude; he deservedly won a group I today," Robl said.
Your Song, who has three wins, a second, and two thirds from seven career starts. The colt will remain on the group I path, pointing for the May 25 Doomben 10,000 before the June 8 Stadbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm.
A homebred, Your Song is out of the winning Fuji Kiseki mare Zembu. His second dam is the Mr. Prospector mare Wanice, a half sister to European Horse of the Year and U.S. champion turf male Fantastic Light.
