Rising Light was confidently backed from $4.50 into $2.45 favourite before scoring for Wesley Vale trainer Gaetan Delon in the Class 1 Plate.

Merv Decides ($2.60 to $5.50) was a notable drifter but still ran second favourite while winning the 1150m Maiden for Brighton trainer Terry Evans.

However not many punters were cheering after Boss Cheyenne ($10 to $15) scored an overdue win for Longford trainer Peter Luttrell in the 1350m Maiden.

Rising Light was Delon's first runner for the season and only the ninth of his career.

He scored with his first-ever runner, Gamble In Paris, at Spreyton last August and Rising Light, who has now won two of eight, is the only horse he's taken to the races since.

French-born Delon, a farrier by trade, can boast a rare strike-rate of 33 per cent.

David Pires was content to sit outside the leader on Rising Light before taking charge in the straight and holding off a late challenge from Wardell.

Merv Decides was only the sixth runner this season for Evans and has shown a lot of promise since debuting with a photo-finish second to Fighting Floyd at Mowbray in January.

He was also placed at his next two starts before going for a spell after a luckless run at Mowbray on Launceston Cup day when caught four wide throughout.

His market drift was surprising given his form, with punters unloading on the unplaced Gee Gee Enuf Speed who was $3.00 into $1.75.

Mehmet Ulucinar gave Merv Decides a lovely run just off the pace before coming four wide on the home turn and racing away to win comfortably.

Peter Luttrell could have been excused for thinking 'about time' after Boss Cheyenne gave him his first win for the season.

The five-year-old mare had been threatening to win a race for more than 12 months.

She had been placed at four of her previous 13 starts and been beaten by less a length on four occasions.

Boss Cheyenne settled second-last before apprentice Ianish Luximon hooked wide at the top of the straight and she stormed home to score narrowly from The Beekeeper who had to settle for his ninth minor placing in 15 starts.

After finishing off last season with wins by Ethical Dilemma and Captain Morgan, Luttrell has had a relatively quiet start to the new racing year with only seven runners at the first four meetings.

Troy Baker left it until late in the day but took riding honours with a double in the last two races on Gee Gee Plane for Stuart Gandy and Our Little Ted for Cameron Thompson.

Our Little Ted made it two wins in a row in the Benchmark 74 Handicap which ended up with only three runners.

The race looked a poor programming choice for the last leg of the quadrella even before three scratchings halved the field size.