Who Shot Thebarman's Zipping Classic romp was the highlight on a good day of racing at Sandown for the last official day of the 2015 Spring Carnival.
Who Shot Thebarman was the beneficiary of an enterprising ride from top jock James McDonald who, instead of sitting back to play the cards he was dealt, forced the race onto his own terms - and more importantly Who Shot Thebarman's terms.
The ride stole the show to an extent, but the performance underneath that ride shouldn't be ignored. A seven-length romp here as impressive as any in the race in modern times.
The race behind him did collapse to an extent - the well-fancied Rising Romance dropped right out and was later found to be sore - but Who Shot Thebarman still ran right up to his peak Timeform Rating of 121 and the overall time was very solid.
Seven lengths away in second was Tall Ship who closed the race off nicely after being last at the corner. He was beaten 13lbs by Who Shot Thebarman, running to 108, but that was a repeat of his peak form to this point and it looks a rating that he can build on based on this effort.
His official rating went up just a kilogram - from 97 to 99 - and that looks a rating he can make the most of perhaps as soon as next week if connections opt to back up into the Ballarat Cup.
Who Shot Thebarman was coming off a solid performance without a lot of luck in the Melbourne Cup, a race that Zipping came through in three of his four Sandown wins and that produced Americain and Au Revoir to win the Classic in two of the four years since.
As has been much discussed, this year's Melbourne Cup was run at a very steady tempo and it may be that it proved an ideal piece of work for those coming through the race.
The three that came out of the Melbourne Cup to run in the two-mile Sandown Cup all ran to form, finishing 1-2-3 in the staying feature later on the card.
The Sandown Cup was run along at a good gallop, a complete change of scenery for the three off the Melbourne Cup, and it was Almoonqith that made the most of it, running right up to the 118 rating that he returned at Geelong.
The Offer was closing him down at the finish and after adjusting for the extra kilo that he carried he comes out marginally on top with a rating of 119, right in line with his best recent form and just shy of his 122 rating from his 2014 Sydney Cup-winning autumn.
The 2015 Sydney Cup winner Grand Marshal stayed on well in third and ran right up to his Sydney Cup rating of 115.
That trio were all clear of the best ratings that we have seen in this race in it's current form (since 2010) and they are a big tick for the race and the role that it plays.
We are importing a lot of staying talent but there can only be one Melbourne Cup winner per year so we should see that talent trickle down and bolster other staying features such as this race, the Adelaide Cup and the Sydney Cup.
All of Who Shot Thebarman, Almoonqith, The Offer and Grand Marshal are likely to be set for the Sydney Cup in the autumn where they would all be expected to be competitive.
The other key feature on the card was the Sandown Guineas which also threw up a well up to scratch winner.
That winner was Mahuta who made it four wins on end this spring and his rating of 115 may not prove the top for him just yet.
That rating hasn't been topped in the Sandown Guineas since Caymans won the race in 2008 and interestingly it matches the rating of the Caulfield Guineas runner up Lizard Island.
Throw in the fact that Lizard Island's 115 comes with a query attached and Mahuta's with the promise of more to come and he has to be seen as a leading Australian Guineas candidate in the autumn.
New Zealand's Guineas winner Xtravagant (rated 123+) is the best three-year-old miler in the region at this point, and Caulfield Guineas winner Press Statement (120p) should prove better than that in time, but Mahuta is in the ballpark on this Sandown performance.
From behind Mahuta perhaps the most interesting runner is Ngarimu who ran to 108. He's interesting not just because he is a smart prospect himself but because he did a good job advertising the talents of last week's winner - and Mahuta's stablemate - Palentino.
Palentino is another likely to be aimed at the Australian Guineas and while he will have to take some large strides between now and then to be winning a race like that he looks a promising horse indeed and is one well worth a spot in most black books.
