When the Mick-Price-trained Princess Of Queens made her previous trip to Morphettville she had absolutely no luck when down the track in the Listed WH Wylie Stakes and when the starter let them go in Saturday's Listed Christmas Hcp (1200m) it looked to be a similar story.
The trouble began when the winner of the race for the past two years, Casino Wizard, parted company with Emily Finnegan and hampered several runners, most notably Princess Of Queens.
Dom Tourneur managed to settle the daughter of Magnus who came from back in the field to overpower the rank outsider Mazurek in the closing stages to win by a long-neck with Zalmona one and a half lengths back in third.
With her first stakes win the 5yo mare advances her record to 6 wins, 2 seconds and 4 thirds from 23 starts with earnings of $335,740.
A homebred daughter of Magnus, Princess Of Queens becomes the second stakes-winner for the Zabeel mare Tristabeel whose six runners to reach the track have been winners.
They are led by the Group III SAJC National Stakes winner Duke Of Brunswick and the talented Melbourne winner Prince Of Brooklyn, both brothers to Princess Of Queens.
They are out of the Zabeel mare Tristabeel whose dam Consult (Bletchingly) is a daughter of the champion racemare Research (Imperial Prince) the Australian Horse of the Year & Champion 3YO in Australasia in 1988-89. Her 9 wins included the AJC Derby, AJC Oaks, VRC Oaks and AJC Flight Stakes.
Tristabeel did not have another live foal after Princess Of Queens who becomes the 16th stakes-winner for Sun Stud's highly consistent Magnus who has passed the half-century mark in winners for the season.
