Not for the first time, it came down to Ranier and Wild Planet in the first at Flemington on Saturday.

We’ve been treated to some classics between the pair over the Spring, but it was James Cummings’ colt winning the Group 3  Carbine Club Stakes (1600m), racing along the rails to burst through the pack to win by a head.

Ranier opened as the $4.60 favourite with Ladbrokes, enjoying the run of the race from barrier one.

A week on from winning a fourth consecutive Cox Plate aboard Winx, jockey Hugh Bowman paid full credit to the champion trainer.

“He’s a good horse, he was favourite obviously, so I expected it to win” Bowman said after the race.

“I was so delighted with barrier one, and full credit to James Cummings, after I won on him at Caulfield, I said ‘I’m not convinced he’s a miler he might be a real sprinter’, but James had it in his head that he wanted to test the horse at this distance.

He’s hit the nail on the head, he’s just matured so much as this preparation has gone on.”

Rainier won the Gotham Stakes (1400m) a fortnight ago over Yulong January and third placegetter, Wild Planet.

Back-to-back wins in Melbourne, including one over the mile, now has Cummings feeling good about his chances in the Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m) back at Flemington next March.

“I just really wanted to see the horse running on nicely at the top of the straight” Cummings said when asked about Ranier’s favourable barrier on Saturday.

“We had to get out there and prove that he could run the mile out strongly, he is a sharp colt by Lonhro and he’s out of a Kanzan mare with plenty of speed, so he’s got to get out and show the strength at 1600m, and he did that today.

“I really feel like he’s earmarked himself as a Guineas colt, probably for the Australian Guineas back here in March next year.”

As for Wild Planet, the three-year old’s Spring looks over as the Lindsay Park stable look ahead to the Autumn.