Import King Of The Sea has thrown his hat into the ring for spring feature races after a commanding first-up triumph at Randwick, according to trainer Ciaron Maher.

In only his second Australian racing campaign, the former UK galloper was outstanding, producing a brilliant turn of foot from the tail of the field to capture the Drinkwise Mile (1600m) on Saturday.

The foreman for Maher’s Sydney stable, Jo Gerard-Dubord, expressed confidence in the five-year-old’s potential but noted that his campaign path would be shaped by his upcoming performances.

“He’s a horse with plenty of talent. He didn’t have a lot of luck last preparation, but the form out of his races has been very strong since, and there’s a lot more to come,” Gerard-Dubord advised.

“He is still lowly rated, so we probably need to see what he does next start. There are plenty of options.

“Whether we target a race like the ‘Metrop’ (Metropolitan) here. You’ve got a Naturalism (Stakes) down in Melbourne to try to get into a Caulfield Cup.

“When they’ve got a turn of foot like that, for a horse that can stay and do that over a mile, it’s very exciting.”

This win represents King Of The Sea’s fourth career victory from ten starts and his maiden success in Australia.

Ridden by James Mcdonald, the gelding justified his $1.80 favouritism, crossing the line 1-3/4 lengths ahead of Puntin ($9), with Anthracite ($15) a further half-neck adrift in third. Punters who used the best horse racing betting apps saw their favoured runner deliver a superb first-up performance.

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