Cosmic Force became Deep Field's first Stakes winner and surged into Golden Slipper contention in the process with a breathtaking victory in the Group 3 Pago Pago Stakes at Rosehill.
The 2YO colt needed to win the Pago Pago to guarantee himself a start in next Saturday's $3.5m Golden Slipper and he not only won, he bolted in by 7 and ¼ lengths.
The TAB reacted strongly to the result, firming his odds from $51 into $7 for the world's richest juvenile race at Rosehill in seven days' time.
Cosmic Force (Deep Field x Little Zeta) is a $180,000 Inglis Classic buy for China Horse Club, Newgate Farm and Winstar, from the Ascot Park draft.
Newgate's Henry Field said the Peter and Paul Snowden-trained colt was more than capable of backing up and winning the Slipper, which would be a monumental result for the farm, given it stands Deep Field.
Cosmic Force would become the third consecutive Inglis graduate to win the Slipper if he was to achieve the feat, following the success of Estijaab and She Will Reign the past two years.
"To be fair, Peter and Paul thought he was an exceptional colt from the get-go,'' Field said.
"Arguably he could have won last start [Skyline Stakes] if he got a different run but today he handled the conditions, gave them a walloping and it's just exciting to have a son of Deep Field show that he looks like he could be the real deal.
"The feedback we're getting on Deep Field is extraordinary from every trainer, hence the reason they have sold so well as yearlings so far this year.
"When you look at [Deep Field's sire] Northern Meteor, he only got warm during the winter of his 2YO year so for Deep Field to have a headline horse so early in his career as a stallion – and we expect him to get better in time – it's a great thrill.''
There are six progeny of Deep Field – himself an Inglis Easter graduate - at next month's Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
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Meanwhile two of the most consistent horses in training, Easy Eddie (Super Easy) and Widgee Turf (Turffontein), enjoyed wins today.
Easy Eddie deservedly joined the Stakes winner's club with victory in the Group 3 Maurice McCarten Stakes at Rosehill.
The 4YO – who cost his trainer Joe Pride $55,000 from Two Bays Farm at the 2016 Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale – has finished in the top three at 16 of his 20 career starts.
Eight of those have been wins, with today's victory taking his career prizemoney to over $450,000.
And Widgee Turf (Turffontein) made it career win No.10 with victory in the Listed March Stakes at Flemington, taking his career earnings to almost $1million.
It was the 16th top-three finish from his past 17 starts for the 5YO, who sold for just $4500 to Crown Valley Lodge at the 2014 Great Southern Sale, where he was offered by Little Plains Stud.
