After taking most by surprise at his debut win, including his trainer Alwin Tan, Dixieland Rock will be less of an unknown quantity at his second start this Sunday – except for one item: Turf.

On the way to his first run, the son of Husson did not really give any inkling of precocious ability at trackwork or barrier trials, but despite being very raw at his debut in a Restricted Maiden Polytrack race over 1200m, he powered home to score at long odds of $188.

The main appeal of that race to Tan was the luxury load of 49.5 kilos he would carry against older horses under the RM conditions, whereas he would have carried 57kgs in any Leg of the Singapore Golden Horseshoe series.

Apprentice jockey Simon Kok Wei Hoong to ride Dixieland Rock again on Sunday, picture Singapore Turf Club

Now that the “soft approach” is ticked off, Tan needed a turf race as a test run for Dixieland Rock towards his main assignment, the Group 2 Aushorse Golden Horseshoe (1200m) on July 13.

After running a slide rule through the programme, the Singaporean handler was left with the fourth Leg of the series as the only viable option, this Sunday’s $90,000 Inglis Ready2Race Stakes over 1200m on turf - 12 days before the Aushorse Golden Horseshoe.

“I wanted to give Dixieland Rock a run on turf after he won on Poly. I hope he’s as good on turf, as the Group 2 race, as we all know, is on turf,” said Tan.

“He has maintained his form since his win. He galloped on Saturday and today and I was very happy with his work.

“Today, he galloped on Track 4 with My Horse. It was a quiet blowout as the track is quite firm, nothing too taxing.”

Tan said the form with young horses is “what you see is what you get”, and from what the Thai-owned two-year-old has shown him so far, his can presumably be on an upward spiral.

“The form for two-year-olds and three-year-olds is always consistent. It’s either they’re very good or they are no good,” he said.

“Unlike older horses like five-year-olds and six-year-olds. Their form goes up and down.”

Tan has again booked Dixieland Rock’s debut-winning partner, promising apprentice jockey Simon Kok Wei Hoong, even if the advantage of his four-kilo allowance cannot be utilised in a Group event.

“I never change a winning jockey. If a rider won on one of my horses, I will usually keep the same rider,” said Tan.

“Simon rode him very well at his first race. To be fair, I put him back on as he did a good job – even if he cannot claim his four kilos.”

Dixieland Rock was also meant to have a stable companion in the Inglis Ready2Race Stakes, but Galvarino unfortunately failed a barrier test on Tuesday and was scratched.

Like Dixieland Rock, Galvarino has one run under the belt – in the third Leg of the Singapore Golden Horseshoe series, the IRT Juvenile Stakes (1200m) on June 15. The son of Stryker, who then raced under the name of Crazy Wins, did not win but ran a creditable fourth to Lim’s Lightning.

“At his first start, he proved difficult to load and that’s why he had to pass a barrier test this morning, but unfortunately, he could not go in and failed the test,” said Tan.

“It’s a shame as he has some ability. The new owners, who also have Maximus and Castor with me, didn’t have time to change his name at his first race, and that’s why he raced under his previous name.

“They went for a name they like (Galvarino), but unfortunately, they will have to wait a while before they can start him under his new name.”