Evaporate made a triumphant return to the races with a hard-fought success in the Group 3 Sandown Stakes (1500m), leaving co-trainer Ben Hayes both relieved and impressed.

The gelding had been forced to miss work due to a minor virus following his fifth in the P B Lawrence Stakes, but a strong Flemington jump-out showed he was ready to go. On Saturday, he showed his grit under Blake Shinn to deny Transatlantic by a short-half-head, with Athanatos filling third place.

Hayes confirmed that the Group 1 Toorak Handicap is now the likely goal.

“I’m glad he won, otherwise he might have been in a bit of trouble,” Hayes said with a laugh.

“He made the move, the horse won and full credit to Blake.

“He’s a very exciting horse, like we have always thought, and I think he’s put his hand up to run in the Toorak Handicap in which he can be competitive.

“He got a little virus, had a long time between runs and had a very good horse to his inside which was rock hard fit. I’m very proud of the horse.”

Shinn admitted his decision to push forward mid-race wasn’t part of the original plan.

“Evaporate is an interesting horse,” Shinn said.

“He’s a bold going horse, a bit arrogant. The speed map had El Rocko and Transatlantic being forward, but the pace wasn’t that fast.

“There was an opportunity for me to creep forward, and I went ‘wow’ I might be able to sneak to the front, so I let him slide.

“I’ve got a lot of trust in this horse. He’s a very good horse on his day, as we know, and in the back of my mind he had had the break between runs, but I know how he likes to be ridden.

“You have to go with him, not fight him and that was the play out there. We caught them on the fly and thankfully we got it right.”