The ever-consistent Watch Me Rock nabbed one of only two golden tickets remaining into the G1 Railway Stakes, with a typically gutsy performance to take out the 1400m G3 Asian Beau in an Ascot thriller!
It was the first Group victory for the five year old son of prominent WA sire Awesome Rock.
The Grant and Alana Williams trained Watch Me Rock was stepping up from dual Listed wins in the Old Comrade Stakes and Grandstand Cup in April, and taking good improvement from his first up third in the G3 Eurythmic Stakes.
He had to beat a smoking hot favourite to do it!
Punters backed the NZ bred Cosmic Crusader (Maurice) like he was Phar Lap II, after the talented gelding returned from a long layoff with two complete demolition jobs at Belmont Park which he won by a combined margin of twelve lengths!
The Michael Grantham trained, Peters Investments bred and owned Cosmic Crusader is a blueblood from one of Bob Peter's best families - his grand dam Stormy Nova was a great race filly and a great producer, with numerous stakes winners descending from her.
Punters were backing Bob to be back in the winner's circle again and piled the money on.
Watch Me Rock was kept safe and there were nibbles of support for talented mare Bonjoy (Maschino) and the lightly raced stakes winning entire September Morn (Playing God) but it was more or less a case of one way betting traffic.
Cosmic Crusader had drawn wide, and Christian Johnston-Porter dug up the big gelding when the gates opened in search of the lead. Cosmic responded perhaps a little excessively and he had company too - his stablemate Luvnwar (War Decree) inside him on the rail.
The bonny mare was resuming - as she did last year in the Asian Beau, when she ran second to Super Smink.
The stablemates were matching motors out in front and William Pike had Watch Me Rock in a lovely position tucked in behind them.
Bonjoy and September Born were travelling close enough if good enough, and the last start RS Crawford Stakes winner Rope Them In (Playing God) had dropped back to the tail in his usual fashion.
The field of thirteen sprinter milers thundered into the home straight with Luvnwar (Paddy Carbery) and Johnston-Porter on Cosmic Crusader locked in battle. The mare had a strong kick and came back at the favourite when he headed her, briefly regaining the lead!
Cosmic Crusader surged again but Johnston-Porter had pulled the whip and the red hot favourite was all out.
Meanwhile, Pike had eased Watch Me Rock out of their slipstream and with perfect timing the pair accelerated past the tiring leaders - but from the clouds Rope Them In was on the scene!
Rope Them in carrying 61kg was giving them all plenty of weight but coming from near last he produced one of the best performances of his career.
It wasn't enough to catch Watch Me Rock though, who held him off with determination to win the Asian Beau Stakes and the coveted Railway ticket by a long neck.
Cosmic Crusader and Luvnwar battled on gamely for third and fourth in a bunched finish that had the big Ascot crowd roaring their appreciation.
Bonjoy was not far away, nor was quality mare Storyville (Overshare) - the G2 WA Guineas heroine of 2024 is exempt from the Railway ballot and looks to be tracking nicely towards her grand final.
But all honours were with Pike and Watch Me Rock, one of the most genuine gallopers in the west, who advances his race record to 10 wins, 4 seconds and 2 thirds from 18 starts for $767,945 in stakes.
Bidding for Watch Me Rock fell just short of his $40,000k reserve when he was offered by his breeders, Ridgeport Holdings, at the 2022 Perth Magic Millions Yearling sale.
He was subsequently retained by Ridgeport to be placed in the expert hands of team Williams, and did not race at two years.
Watch Me Rock is the second stakes winner this season and one of six for his sire Awesome Rock, a superb physical specimen and one of the best credentialled stallions to ever stand in Western Australia.
The G1 WFA Mackinnon Stakes winning son of the incomparable Fastnet Rock has had a decided impact on the local breeding scene since taking up stud duties in 2017 for highly successful breeding operation Gold Front Thoroughbreds.
Awesome Rock is proving a particularly effective sire of milers and Classic performers, but his progeny also have plenty of speed, and the will to win.
Watch Me Rock's dam What Choux Want was a fast, G2 placed daughter of Thorn Park's champion son Jimmy Choux.
Imported into Australia in her three year old year she continued her racing career in Melbourne and in Western Australia, but failed to reproduce her earlier form.
A precocious winning juvenile who matured into a NZ Derby winner and Cox Plate runner up, cult hero “Jimmy” never reproduced his own greatness but was a good sire in NZ before - like his daughter What Choux Want - he eventually found his way to WA to take up stud duties at Rosalee Park Stud in Serpentine, where he sadly passed away last year.
What Choux Want's only other named foal to date is the Rommel filly Wotugot, runner up in the 2024 WATC Magic Millions 2YO Plate.
The mare has a 2023 filly by the same sire, a 2024 colt by the Fastnet Rock son Long Leaf and this year foaled a filly to Maschino.
Second dam Bankside Belle by the great Volksraad was a precocious juvenile and stakes-placed winner of 8 races in NZ.
At stud she has produced the top class G2 winning filly Belle Du Nord (Reliable Man).
Bankside Belle is a half sister to stakes placed staying filly Carlotta (Ekraar) and a full sister to tough galloper My Choice, a blacktype winning sprinter in Hong Kong.
Showing their faith in this family, Ridgeport Holdings paid $120k to secure Bankside Belle's 2023 colt by Hello Youmzain out of Karaka’s Book One 2025 - and he will race as Youmzain Bolt in Singapore.
Awesome Rock stands at Gold Front Thoroughbreds on a fee of $7,975.
