Nature Strip bolts in for Ryan Maloney on Friday night (Image: Racing Photos)
It was only a $40,000 handicap for three-year-olds on the fringe of summer, but Nature Strip laid down a performance that might see him contesting much higher-grade races.
Eased down to a 5.5-length win by Ryan Maloney in the IPRINT Handicap (1000m), the Nicconi gelding made it two wins and a second from his three career outings for trainer Robert Smerdon.
WATCH: Nature Strip's dominant win
Five weeks ago, Nature Strip debuted at Mornington and helped apprentice Michael Poy to a winner on his debut in the race saddle, and while he was beaten by Sam's Image on Manikato Stakes night, he showed on Friday night that result was just a minor glitch on his career path.
Maloney said the best is yet to come, too.
"He showed great signs from day one. What he's done this prep has just been a bonus, because he's done it on raw ability," he said post-race.
"I don't know if there's much left around for him [in the coming weeks], but if he spells well and comes back for the autumn, he's a class three-year-old and he's got the makings of a really nice horse."
Maloney said Nature Strip, who stopped the clock at 58.05s but was eased down in the final 50m after being three-wide the trip, has the feel of a top-class horse.
"He gives you that sort of feel [of a Group 1 horse]," Maloney said.
"He's got all the capabilities of a sprinter, but I think with a bit of time over 1400m, you'll see a really nice black-type horse."
Smerdon's stable representative Maree McEwan said while nothing is set in stone, the $250,000 Inglis Dash (1100m) at Flemington on January 20 could be the next main aim for Nature Strip.
The horse is just another 'good one' in the colours of owner Rod Lyons, who also was involved in the likes of Group 1 winner Under the Louvre and G3 winner Under the Bridge.
In the following event, the Hawkes Racing-trained Sprightly Lass then was a similarly dominant winner of a 1000m handicap for fillies and mares, remaining unbeaten after three starts.
Sprightly Lass won in 58.80s, and trainer Wayne Hawkes summed it up pretty well.
"You can't do much more than win three-out-of-three, can you?"
That equation would certainly be what Nature Strip's connections would have liked, but either way, connections of both have got a smart horse on their hands.