Trainer Greg Hickman will tread the Pierata path with two-year-old gelding Eleven Eleven after breaking through at the fifth start at Kembla Grange on Thursday.
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Keagan Latham followed the rail, kicking clear in the straight to win by three lengths in the 1000m Maiden Plate, denying John Thompson a race-to-race double, as debutant Battle Stone worked home for second after being impressive at the trials.
Pierata won the three-year-old Gold Coast Guineas in January last year, before most recently winning the Group 1 All Aged Stakes at Randwick in April.
"I want to go where Pierata went at the Gold Coast," Hickman told Sky Racing.
"That's our main aim, trying to get enough money to go to those races and when he does that, we'll give him a little break and aim for that."
Hickman had a frustrating time after the stable and connections had great expectations of the gelding, who ran second to David Pfeiffer's three-year-old gelding Snips at Nowra, then fifth over 1100m in a maiden at the Randwick Kensington track in June.
"He's always shown us plenty, he's just been a bit awkward," Hickman said.
"We took him to Nowra to get a bit of confidence and that horse has (since) come out and won, there's a bit of form around what he's done in races. Hopefully we can take him back to Queensland again."
Thompson had success when short-priced favourite Dunbrody Power let down in the straight for Hong Kong-bound jockey Blake Shinn in the three-year-old 1000m Maiden, but the race experience of Eleven Eleven had the edge on Best Stone.
The Ciaron Maher and David Eustace-trained Deelbraka missed out again when jumping a $2.35 favourite, getting out late to record another second behind the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott filly Light Exceed.
Murray's double
Rafha's Choice missed out on the Ramornie Handicap and then was slow away in the Class 6 Showcase (1200m) at Grafton Thursday.
But trainer Graeme Murray still completed a success carnival raid, after Tegan Harrison flashed to the post on Two Seas in the previous race and heavily backed filly Miss Scorcher got the bob on Wednesday for Murray to take out the Class 2 Handicap (1100m) on Wednesday.
But Rafha's Choice was backed into post-time favouritism, only to fade in the straight after working early to push up on the pace, finishing eighth behind John Shelton's five-year-old gelding Saxosphone.
Bird to fly
Jason Coyle will split talented fillies River Bird and Spiritual Pursuit in the hope the pair can both continue their winning runs at Rosehill.
While Spiritual Pursuit will aim for back-to-back victories in the ATC Foundation Handicap (1100m), dual acceptor River Bird is an early scratching from that race and will instead line up in the Australian Turf Club Handicap (1200m). with AAP
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