Last minute decision sees Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott win the Hawkesbury Gold Cup

Meanwhile, Hawkesbury trainer Scott Singleton won the Hawkesbury Guineas with Shazee Lee, while Hawkesbury jockey Tye Angland steered Chris Waller’s Shilellagh to victory in the Godolphin Crown.

There was no Hawkesbury connection in the biggest race of the day, however, as Fabrizio held off Moher and Testashadow to win the Hawkesbury Gold Cup.

Waterhouse told Fairfax Media that the decision to start Fabrizio was a last minute one.

"We were never going to come to this race but I looked at him last week and said to Adrian [Bott] 'what about the Hawkesbury Cup with him'," Waterhouse said.

"It was an absolute afterthought. He still had to trial because he had that ban on him, so he went there on Monday and passed and came here looking marvellous.

"He is just a much better horse on top of the ground and the firm going and a brilliant ride really helped."

Scott Singleton was praised by owner Max Kowalczuk after Shazee Lee won the Hawkesbury Guineas by a nose.

Kowalczuk said he had had many trainers over the years but never one like Singleton.

The Hawkesbury trainer himself thanked Kowalczuk for sticking him by him over a long period of time.

It was Shazee Lee’s second win at Hawkesbury in two months, after the three-year-old filly won the Provincial Championship qualifier in March.

In the other races on the day, Chris Waller scored three times, including the Godolphin Crown with Shillelagh.

Training duo Anthony and Edward Cummings scored in the second race of the day, while Newcastle trainer Kris Lees also had a winner.

Canberra trainer Gratz Vella and Warwick Farm’s Mark Newnham rounded out the winning trainers at the XXXX Gold Stand-Alone Saturday.

The three feature races on Stand-Alone Saturday were worth $200,000 each.

A huge crowd, well in excess of 10,000 people, attended the only major race meeting for the weekend a cloudless, autumn day.