The Thousand Guineas Prelude (1400m) at Caulfield in September is on the radar for Tahitian Dancer after the Dawn Approach (IRE) filly broke her maiden at the second time of asking in Saturday's Ladbrokes Info Hub Handicap (1200m) at Moonee Valley.
Given a positive ride by Clayton Douglas, Tahitian Dancer camped up on the outside of the favourite Symphonette before drawing clear to score a three-quarter length win over Darmasun (Fighting Sun) who denied Dawn Approach (IRE) the quinella when she nosed out Sunrise Dancer. (photo Grant Courtney).
Winning trainer Shane Nichols told an interesting story of how Tahitian Dancer ended up in his stable.
"I was the underbidder (on Tahitian Dancer) and went to $75,000 while Luke Trevanion went to $80,000," Nichols told AAP
"I went and apologised to him, saying I cost him $30,000.
"We had a bit of dialogue over a few weeks and the boys that bred her kept 40 per cent, Luke kept 30 per cent and he said if I could sell 30 per cent I could have her to train.
"So happy days.
Tahitian Dancer debuted with a third placing at Sandown last month although Nichols said the filly had impressed from day one.
"Physically, she just wasn't there," he said.
"We thought she could be a Magic Millions or Blue Diamond horse but she wasn't ready for it.
"The Thousand Guineas attracts fillies down from Sydney so the Prelude is the race I'll aim at and work backwards from there as to how long she can have off.
"We can put her away now and put in place a plan for the spring," Nichols said. "I thought so much of her, I went to $180,000 to buy her half-sister (by Choisir) at the Magic Millions." 
Knocked down to Hillside Downs for $80,000 out of the Willow Park Stud draft at the 2017 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Tahitian Dancer (pictured as a yearlin g) is the first foal of the stakes-winning Vital Equine mare Takanori.
A half-sister to the Group III placed Tee Emar (Mossman), Takanori is out of the winning Fuji Kiseki (JPN) mare Nishikawa who is a half-sister to Group II Apollo Stakes winner Alma's Fury (Refuse To Bend) and Group III Doomben Classic winner Enforced (Snippets).
Takanori has a weanling colt by So You Think and was bred back to Lonhro last spring.
Tahitian Dancer becomes the third first crop winner for Darley Stud's promising Dawn Approach (IRE) a 4-time Group 1 winning son of New Approach (IRE) who sired the recent Epsom Derby winner Masar.
