Most punters have lost count but for anyone keeping score there was another one to add to the list at Flemington on Saturday when Wandjina took out the group 3 CS Hayes Stakes for three-year-old colts and geldings over 1400 metres.

The Damien Oliver-ridden colt started at $7.50 and showed heart, commitment and no little ability to see off the West Australian raider Disposition, who started the $4.80 favourite on his Victorian debut for new trainer Wez Hunter, with Darren Weir's tough and consistent colt Stratum Star third at $5.50.

Wandjina, at his 11th start, was one of the most experienced runners in the field, and that know-how was seen to good effect as Oliver grabbed the initiative right from the start when he judged that the pace was not that quick.

Wandjina has contested top-class races throughout his career – he ran third, at the monster odds of $101 in the Caulfield Guineas and was beaten by only 3.6 lengths by Adelaide in the Cox Plate  last spring – so he would undoubtedly have found this first-up assignment at group 3 level much more to his taste.

And so it proved as Oliver dictated terms in front and defied his rivals efforts to run him down as first Disposition, who had always been handy under Craig Williams, came at him in the straight and then Stratum Star, who looked to be travelling beautifully 300 metres from home, launched his challenge.

Wandjina looked to have been headed but fought back like a streetfighter to regain the lead and in the end win by a length, with Stratum Star a half head away third. Mike Moroney's gelding Merion was best of the rest in fourth position, a further two-and-a-quarter lengths away.

Adrian Bott, racing manager for Sydney's Waterhouse, said Wandjina would now go straight to the Australian Guineas in a fortnight. He could then have any number of options in Waterhouse's home state.

"It was a great performance, an incredibly tough effort. He did a few things wrong in the run, he raced a bit keenly first up, he was a bit fresh. But it was real credit to the horse that he could fight it out.

"Gai has always had a really good opinion of him since the first two-year-old trials, right from day one. He's had a few luckless campaigns but towards the end of last campaign he's really started to put it together and he's come back in great order this time round."

Oliver said he was delighted with the way Wandjina fought on. "He  had a good kick for me when the West Australian horse came at me. I thought he is going to have to be pretty tough to fight him off and it was a pretty good effort.

"He had a tough spring campaign but he was able to stand up to it and held his form all the way thorough. He has come back well, I have had a lot to do with him this time in and he has had a perfect preparation towards the Guineas."

Earlier in the day improving Sweet and Speedy, partnered by Craig Newitt, stamped herself as a future Oaks contender when she came late and stayed on well to take out the group 3 The Vanity, the equivalent event for fillies. Sweet and Speedy went off at $17 and was the third leg of an early afternoon treble for Peter Moody, who said she would now be aimed at the ATC Oaks during the Sydney autumn carnival.