Briasa took his place among the elite of Australian sprinting on Saturday by winning the $3 million T J Smith Stakes at Randwick, a performance that sealed his first Group 1 success.

Under the training partnership of Michael, Wayne, and John Hawkes, the lightly raced four-year-old delivered a career-best effort, fending off some of the country’s finest speedsters to stay unbeaten in 2025.

He prevailed by a head over Overpass, with Headwall finishing third in a tight finish that left the crowd buzzing.

The T J Smith win takes Briasa’s career record to seven wins from nine starts, a remarkable feat considering he only debuted in March last year at Kembla Grange. Trainer Michael Hawkes wasn’t surprised.

“I’ve just loved him from day one,” he said.

“I’m just lost for words. This is the moment that we dream of with a horse like this.

“We’ve had our ups and downs, we’re not big anymore but we’ve got quality.”

Briasa’s win also served as compensation for a luckless run in the The Galaxy, where he stormed home from the rear of the field to run fourth. With a better draw this time, Tyler Schiller was able to position him ideally from the jump.

“It makes a difference when you draw a barrier and he’s probably missing one first-up but second-up it’s great to get a barrier,” Schiller said.

“Randwick is more forgiving, and he’s just a very good horse.

“The Hawkes team have maintained him perfectly, they know how to win this race, especially with a grey, I still don’t know his ceiling but he’s got oodles of talent.”

The stable’s win continues their strong tradition in the T J Smith, following three consecutive wins by Chautauqua between 2015 and 2017—also a grey.

Joliestar, the heavily supported $3.30 favourite, had no luck in transit and was held up for a run before finishing ninth, just two lengths behind the winner.