HISTORY is littered with hugely hyped athletes who never truly translate potential into performance. 

In tennis there’s Bernard Tomic and – to some extent Nick Kyrgios – in cricket there’s Shane Watson and in AFL there are myriad including Danyle Pearce and Sean Rusling among many, many others. 

Racing also harbours a long list of purported champions who never reached the dizzying heights predicted for them. 

In most of these cases, the boom was founded upon early performance. 

Not so Rock N Roll Doo. 

On Saturday night at Tabcorp Park, Michael Stanley’s emerging four-year-old flew home to nail his maiden Group 1 victory in the VHRC Caduceus Classic. 

In achieving this feat, while also recording one of the fastest times ever recorded at Melton, Rock N Roll Doo had, in many minds, fulfilled the expectations placed upon him by the punting public. 

In his case, however, this expectation wasn’t based on previous performances or peripheral opinion, it was entirely erected upon the words of his adoring trainer/driver. 

Almost two years ago, without prompting, Stanley announced to the world that Rock N Roll Doo was – or at very least would be – the finest horse he’d handled. 

This is the bloke that oversaw Soho Tribeca when he placed in the Hunter Cup behind Lazarus and the Miracle Mile through the fastest time in Australasian history. 

At the time, Stanley’s declaration sounded either aggressively ambitious or mildly insane. 

As the months were on, without having won at any elite level, the pressure of his statements grew and evolved. 

Then, at 9:17pm on Saturday evening, that pressure suddenly burst. 

Let’s be clear about something; Mick Stanley never needed to let us in on early hopes for Rock N Roll Doo, and, by doing so, he was patently aware of the rod pressing sharply against his own back. 

He did so for two reasons. 

One, to help those that speculate on the industry, and very much aid in sustaining it, punters. 

And two, because predictions like those he outlined help promote the sport in ways that nothing else possibly can. 

If Rock N Roll Doo had never won any feature event, Stanley was still supporting the industry he loves by pumping his tyres. 

Now he has reached the top-tier however and should be a major player for years to come, those early declarations seem much more like prophesies and harness racing, even more than Stanley himself, is the major winner.  

ALDEBARAN Zeus is far from the one-trick pony he’s been painted as by some, 

That much was confirmed when Brent Lilley’s speed machine led, retained, and resisted all challengers in Saturday night’s Group 1 Australasian Trotting Championship at Tabcorp Park. 

Amazingly, you’d think defeating open class rivals would also make Aldebaran Zeus the most exciting trotter of his generation. 

Yet Ollivici, who triumphed earlier in the evening, may well test that theory in coming weeks. 

The opinions expressed in The Forum are those of the author and may not be attributed to or represent policies of Harness Racing Victoria, which is the state authority and owner of thetrots.com.au.