Racing: Hore Lacy back on top after Toorak Toff scores

Damien Oliver. Photo / Getty Images

Victorian trainer Rick Hore-Lacy emerged triumphant after Toorak Toff's explosive Golden Rose victory helped erase memories of his last visit to Rosehill.

The colourful horseman has had his ups and downs, no lower moment than when Redoute's Choice was scratched from the 1999 Golden Slipper on race-day afternoon with a high temperature.

However, the problems all belonged to others in a rough-house Golden Rose (1400m) on Saturday when Toorak Toff ($7.50) avoided trouble approaching the first turn in the season's first group one race.

Damien Oliver bided his time on the colt and brought him wide in the straight where he unleashed a powerful sprint to surge to the line a half-neck in front of race leader Squamosa ($9) with a short neck to another backmarker Ilovethiscity ($26).

"He is a very, very good horse and I thought he could win," Hore-Lacy said.

"I don't know how he stacks up against Redoute's Choice yet but he's looking the goods.

"He's halfway, no a quarter of the way, there now."

Redoute's Choice won four group one races in Hore-Lacy's care and went on to become Australia's champion sire.

It was Hore-Lacy's first group one win since Rinky Dink landed the 2004 Australasian Oaks.

"It's been a bloody long wait," he said.

Hore-Lacy said the plan was to go to the Caulfield Guineas with Toorak Toff and hope he drew a good barrier.

"We'll probably go to the Guineas Prelude," he said.

"I think his ideal distance is 1600m and imagine what he could do if he ever draws an inside barrier.

"He didn't go inside a horse, he had to come round them all."

It was the third win of the day for Oliver who said he knew he had a fighter on his hands.

"I had to peel off a bit earlier than I wanted," Oliver said.

"He was under a lot of pressure but kept responding.

"I knew Gai's horse [Squamosa] left in front might be suss the last 100m and I knew my horse would keep coming."

Squamosa ($9) went into the race unbeaten from three starts, all on wet tracks, but showed his inexperience by wandering about in the straight.

"He has done a wonderful job in his first preparation," trainer Gai Waterhouse said.

"He is a very good horse and he will go for a spell and I will bring him back for sprint races like the Newmarket Handicap in the autumn."

Masquerader was sent out the $3.80 favourite and jockey Hugh Bowman said he copped some of the backwash from the early incident.

"But that's not an excuse," he said after finishing seventh.

Golden Slipper winner Crystal Lily was the second elect at $4.20 but, after travelling up on the pace, weakened to finish 11th.

"She was disappointing, she raced flat," trainer Mathew Ellerton said.

"We'll take her home to Melbourne and reassess things there."

Slipper runner-up Decision Time held his ground throughout to run a solid fourth after his failure in the Up And Coming Stakes.

Kudakulari showed he had recovered from his last in the Run To The Rose when he was found to have heart arrhythmia.

He came home from last to finish sixth with trainer Bart Cummings eyeing off the Spring Champion Stakes on October 2.

- AAP