Trainer Anthony Cummings backed his own judgment against Surge Ahead's pedigree and made the right call when the gelding bred for speed won a middle-distance race at Flemington.

Surge Ahead, a half-brother to classy sprinter Smart Missile, stepped up in distance from 1400m to 1800m in Thursday's Listed Connoisseur Stakes and the three-year-old produced a determined on-speed performance to win by three-quarters of a length.

"I took a bit of a punt coming here," Cummings said.

"There's a lot of speed in his pedigree and being a half-brother to Smart Missile, he struggled with the mile when we got him there.

"To come here to this race was a bit of an act of faith in the way the horse is built and the way he acted and the way he appeared to us in the stable. So I'm really pleased to see that come through and get the money."

Surge Ahead ($8.50) sat outside the leader and kept responding when challenged in the straight to defeat Pompeius ($21) with a head to the favourite Gallatin ($2.35) third.

With a first stakes win on the board for Surge Ahead, Cummings said a start in the Group Two Sandown Guineas (1600m) at Caulfield on Saturday week would be considered.

"He's plainly a pretty nice horse and he's got a really good future," Cummings said.