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Stakes races during the carnival will be on the agenda for blue-blooded colt Rock And Swing after a strong debut win at Warwick Farm on Wednesday.
Carrying the blood of top sires Fastnet Rock and High Chaparral, the James Cummings-trained two-year-old hit the line hard for a narrow win in the TAB More Than Just Winning Handicap (1200m).
A $600,000 Karaka yearling buy, Rock And Swing is a son of Fastnet Rock and Dance On By, a full sister to High Chaparral.After settling back in the field in the run, Rock And Swing was behind a wall of horses in the straight but pushed through a gap to get his head down on the line in a photo finish.
Rock And Swing ($6) scored by a nose over another well bred youngster in Sparkle ($20), a daughter of More Than Ready and Thousand Guineas winner Gallica, with Wine ($10), a son of Street Cry and dual Group 1 winner Purple, third.Cummings has a big opinion of Rock And Swing and expects the colt to step up to stakes grade at his next run.
While the Pago Pago Stakes (1200m) will be considered, Cummings said races such as the Baillieu Handicap (1400m) and Fernhill Handicap (1600m) would be his preferred option but believes the colt will be even better next season.“I was very thrilled with his finish and the fact that it was 1200m on debut, this horse could have a very bright future,” Cummings said.
“He could be a terribly exciting horse up to 1600m and 2000m as a spring three year old.”
Winning jockey Hugh Bowman also believes Rock And Swing has a bright future.
“The penny hasn’t dropped but we’ve got something to work with,” Bowman said.
“He’s immature but I just liked everything he did today.”