Former Victoria Racing Club chairman Andrew Ramsden has celebrated victory in the race named in his honour with topweight Niwot putting in a strong performance to win the Listed staying feature at Flemington.Ramsden is the manager of the Gurners Bloodstock Syndicate which he describes as a family operation and races Niwot with a group which includes Rupert Legh.The Legh Racing Syndicate is also in the ownership of Saturday's Doomben Cup third placegetter Glass Harmonium, prepared by Mike Moroney

Former Victoria Racing Club chairman Andrew Ramsden has celebrated victory in the race named in his honour with topweight Niwot putting in a strong performance to win the Listed staying feature at Flemington.

Ramsden is the manager of the Gurners Bloodstock Syndicate which he describes as a family operation and races Niwot with a group which includes Rupert Legh.

The Legh Racing Syndicate is also in the ownership of Saturday's Doomben Cup third placegetter Glass Harmonium, prepared by Mike Moroney.

Ramsden has been in the ownership of many top horses including Gurner's Lane, Paris Lane, Sky Heights, De Gaulle Lane and Brew.

Niwot, who was given up on as a racing proposition after smashing a knee nearly two years ago, is now qualified for the Melbourne Cup, the other 3200m race run at Flemington in addition to the Andrew Ramsden.

The Galileo six-year-old, prepared by Michael, Wayne and John Hawkes, had won the Listed Winter Cup (2400m) at Rosehill in June 2009 before the injury and spent 19 months on the sidelines before resuming in February.

The gelding has won twice, both at Flemington, from five starts since coming back and was runner-up to Tinamou in the Warrnambool Cup (2350m) at his previous start.

Niwot ($5 equal fav) gave jockey Dean Yendall his biggest win in prize money-wise, the Andrew Ramsden being a $200,000 race.

Yendall won the 2003 Group Three Christmas Hcp in Adelade on Cumbria and other Listed races including the recent Wangoom Handicap at Warrnambool aboard Uxorious as well as Listed races in South Australia and Tasmania.

"He's done a good job this horse," Wayne Hawkes said.

"After smashing his knee we said to the owners he'd never ever come back, so to come back and be doing this ...

"There are only two two-mile races at Flemington and I know this is a long way from the Melbourne Cup, but he's run the trip out which is something most horses don't do."

"He mightn't be in the same class as the Americains, So You Thinks or Maluckydays this bloke, but he's going to run the trip."

Yendall said Niwot was relaxed in the run and he had to stoke him up to get him going.

He wore down race leader I'm Jake ($8.50) and raced away for a 2-1/2 length win with Tasmanian stayer Norsqui ($10) a half-neck away third.

The other equal favourite, the imported mare Becqua Adoree was disappointing, finishing ninth of the 16 runners.

The placegetters thrashed the rest of the field with the import Grand Ducal finishing 5-1/2 lengths away fourth.

Tarawera (14th) bled from both nostrils and faces a mandatory three-month ban from racing.