Two-year-old Flypast has surprised Daniel Moor and created a good first impression on the jockey with a narrow debut win at Mornington.
The David Brideoake-trained Flypast stepped out for his first start in the Clanbrooke Racing Plate (1000m) at Monday's meeting which carried metropolitan status.
He hit the line well between runners from the second half of the field to win in a head-bobbing finish over Tata Madiba.
"He made a nice first impression," Moor said.
"I had never sat on the horse and I couldn't get up any of his trials this morning because the internet was down, so I just came to the races with a complete blank slate.
"He's a little bit raw but he had a lot to deal with in that race because there was awful kick-back, a lot of horses shifting around, so for a two-year-old to do that at its first start on a wet deck is a good effort."
Moor admitted Flypast had the home track advantage but said the gelding showed raw ability and his win came as a nice surprise.
Flypast defeated Tata Madiba by a nose, with Poolside Hamilton another short neck third.
The Mornington track was retrospectively downgraded to heavy after the opening race.