Racing:Geoff Huffer was all smiles after witnessing his 25-1 shot Cockney Rebel - named after Steve Harley and his chart-topping 1970s band - come home in a blaze of glory in the Stan James 2000 Guineas at Newmarket.
The outsider flew round the stands side group passing the two-furlong marker in the mile Classic to lead inside the distance and keep on in impressive fashion, seeing off the front-running Vital Equine by a length and a half.
Dutch Art led home the far side group - three-quarters of a length adrift - while Aidan O'Brien's pair of Duke Of Marmalade and Eagle Mountain were fourth and fifth respectively having also raced on the stands side.
Huffer had been full of confidence before the race, and that faith proved justified as his son of Val Royal quickened like a smart horse and kept lengthening once hitting the front under Olivier Peslier.
The colt was bought relatively cheaply from the Doncaster Sales for 30,000 guineas, but progressed nicely as a juvenile and signed off his campaign with a third-place finish behind Vital Equine in the Champagne Stakes at York.
Huffer saddled Persian Heights to win the St James's Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot in 1988, but has only been back in the training ranks for four years and he said: "If you had watched Sky News this morning you would have seen me say he would be in the first three, and hopefully win.
"This is the best horse I have ever trained.
"I took him to Lingfield about 10 days ago and he worked with Banjo Patterson over a mile - who is a good lead horse - and in the last furlong and a half he took 25 lengths out of him.
"I've been in the game long enough to realise what I'd got.
"I left the riding plans to Olivier as he is a great jockey and he said he wanted to come over to the stands side and track on the outside, and he was cantering.
"He has got so much speed - he could win over six furlongs.
"He needed to fill out and develop from last year. He was rated about 8lb behind Teofilo, which is about three lengths, and he improved over the winter to the tune of about five or six lengths."
The winner is now likely to head to the Royal meeting and Huffer continued: "I think he will be a top-class miler and he may stretch to a mile and a quarter.
"But I won't be doing that yet and may wait until something like the Juddmonte. He'll go to the St James's Palace next.
"It means everything to win this race. I have had a bit of a chequered career, but I have always done well at the training game."
The locally-based handler added after netting the first prize of just over £210,000: "Jamie Spencer is my landlord - I hope he doesn't put the rent up now!"
Peslier, winning the race at the seventh time of asking, said: "To race on the stands side is a big help and that is where I wanted to go, but at the start I couldn't get there from my draw.
"The trainer said he needed cover so I waited behind, and got too far behind at one point, so I just had to sit and wait.
"The horse was relaxed and moving well - at three furlongs out I started to move as the horse wanted to go.
"He has a big acceleration and probably got to the front too soon, but he kept going and going.
"I couldn't believe how he kept quickening. He travelled so easily and won very, very well."
Harley and his band Cockney Rebel hit the top of the charts in 1975 with Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me) and the singer was elated after Huffer's charge, who is owned by his friend Phil Cunningham senior, prevailed.
He said: "I have lived a life and I have just lived it all again in two minutes there! This was as exciting as anything for me and I have done a lot.
"Geoff is a serious trainer, who people don't give enough credit to.
"I like handicap hurdlers to own, but I was never going to have a horse like this so I told Phil he could have the name if he wanted it. I'm usually away on tour when he runs."
Cunningham added: "It's a dream for a small owner.
"He's in the Derby - Geoff's preference was for the St James's Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot but he didn't look like he was stopping there.
"It's a marvellous day. Geoff would have told anyone the horse would have been in the first three. He was the forgotten horse."