Opera Ballo took his record to three wins from four starts with a commanding success in the Listed Henry Cecil Stakes at Newmarket.

A winner of his first two outings on the all-weather at Kempton, Charlie Appleby's colt subsequently finished sixth when upped to Group 3 company in the Craven Stakes.

However, fitted with the first-time hood, the striking son of Ghaiyyath got firmly back on track with a victory in the Listed Heron Stakes at Sandown last month and with the headgear retained, he was sent off the 11/8 market leader under a treble-seeking William Buick.

Despite still over racing slightly in the early stages, Opera Ballo moved smoothly into contention on the heels of his pacemaker Spectacular View.

Buick barely had to shake up the progressive three-year-old to strike the front in the final furlong and with the minimum of fuss, he pulled two- and three-quarter lengths clear of Seagulls Eleven.

Following the contest, Appleby said he would continue to take it slowly with his exciting three-year-old, with the Newmarket-based handler expecting him to get further in time.

He said: "It's easy to say after the event, but I'd have been disappointed if he'd got beat to be honest. He's a very exciting horse we thought a lot of in the spring and even in the winter to be fair.

"He shows signs of his father as he's a strong-minded horse, but he's a great galloper and has got a big engine.

"People asked why we didn't run him over seven furlongs in the Jersey (at Royal Ascot), but if you come back in trip and try to put speed in these sort of horses you can lose them and that's the last thing I want to do, because I think he's actually going to end up being a 10-furlong horse."

On what the future may hold, he added: "He's a horse we'll keep taking baby steps with.

"At home you can put him in front or put him in behind and he just does as he's asked, but when he turns up here (on a racecourse) he's a different beast.

"He's got to learn to do it the right way, I think he'll have learnt a lot today and we might take him to Deauville for a Group Three.

"I know it sounds boring, and people have asked why we haven't been a bit punchier, but I'm very much working back from next year with him and I want to nurse him along so next year we have a horse that we can go to war with.

"This horse can gallop, there's no doubt about that, but he's got to learn to do it the right way on the racetrack."