SIR DON rallied against the rail yesterday to outbattle fellow American and stablemate OF A REVOLUTION, landing the grade-one Viceroy Trophy at five and a half furlongs, both upstaging 1-5 favourite PACK PLAYS, who struggled to show his usual blazing speed under joint topweight 126lb.

Expected to maximise his cruising speed against OF A REVOLUTION, whom he had beaten by two and a quarter lengths going six and a half furlongs in January, PACK PLAYS was instead taken out of his comfort zone by the seven-year-old, who had won last December’s Bruceontheloose Sprint when making his local debut on Mouttet Mile Day.

Chasing not being his forte, PACK PLAYS reluctantly raced second into the lane while SIR DON crept closer along the rail under Omar Walker. Burly OF A REVOLUTION kicked away from PACK PLAYS and his stablemate, WALL STREET TRADER, who had loomed four-wide at the top of the straight, but could not escape rail-running SIR DON.