The G3 Open Sprint under set weights and penalties saw the Australian bred Sacred Star show his class and finally snare another win after a frustrating summer. Sacred Star has been stymied by wet tracks and some manmade over-watered disasters all summer but today copped while not ideal footing it was good enough. He had not won for thirteen months but at 59kg today was meeting rivals he should always beat even on iffy ground. After sitting not too far away on the inner the big horse worked off to get away from slower inside lanes the run home at Ellerslie almost all day. Once he hit the lead at the 200m he repelled all challengers as he should versus this lot at a weight he been allocated for his last three G1 outings. It was his ninth overall win from twenty-nine starts and a Queensland campaign beckons as per usual late in the season. The time of 1:09.56 was the best time of the day, as it should be for these older sprinters at G3, but it gives the Ratings 75 winner earlier in Go Nicholas that won in 1:09.93 kudos too. Red Striker ran home hard once out into clear air and she is best when saved up for as long as possible. Durham Town the old boy got a soft run and fought on for third closer in than the rest so can still pay his way. Trepidation came home strongly for fourth and the mare is best ridden that way. Statham led up and was still third at the 100m before being swamped late into fifth but the key fact is his rider angled away from the inner deliberately turning for home. Mabeel was the eyecatcher and he screamed home late for sixth beaten less than two lengths after being tardy and last on settling. He is normally an on pacer and was coming back from a G1 fourth over a mile so did very well all things considered. Silver Eclipse and Miss Foxwood ran home well with the former settling down second last and the latter being trapped wide in the midfield. The rest got beaten too far to make many excuses but Speech Craft ran into a pocket at the 150m when having something to offer and was hard held thereafter to the line. Sacred Star was a weight certainty at G3 under 59kg but must have reasonable footing so he can surge as per normal. It was part of a good day for the Tony Pike stable and pairing with rider Vinnie Colgan that later in the card would capture the G1 NZ Derby.