Talented four-year-old galloper Our Ol' Fella earned a preparation for the $130,000 Hannan's Handicap at Kalgoorlie when he finished powerfully to win the $60,000 Winter Championship Final (1400m) at Belmont Park.

The Steve Wolfe-trained bay, starting at $7.50, charged home from ninth near the home turn for jockey Shaun McGruddy and scored by 3/4 length from front runner Cobble Lane ($15). Zester ($7) fought on to finish a close third.

Our Ol' Fella, owned by a syndicate, has won seven races and earned stakes of$185,000 in a 23-start career.

"He'll now have a let-up and be set for the Hannan's Handicap over 1400m in mid-September," Wolfe said. "Our Ol' Fella had run a fifth and two fourths in his three starts leading up to the championship final.

"I experimented with gear changes in a bid to get him back into winning form. It was decided to race him without blinkers and his lugging bit was also removed. The changes did the trick and he came back to his best.

"He should be a good Hannan's prospect."

Wolfe hopes Our Ol' Fella can match his former class galloper Mapperholic, who won the 2003 Hannan's Handicap by three lengths for Melbourne jockey Danny Nikolic. Mapperhaloc went on to run third in the 2003 Railway Stakes.

McGruddy praised Wolfe's horsemanship in bringing Our Ol' Fella back to winning form.

"Steve tinkered with the horse's gear and showed a lot of skill in making the right changes to Our Ol' Fella's blinkers and lugging bit."

Wolfe, who has stables at Albany, said he had recently begun preparing a team at Ascot.

"Shaun McGruddy has been riding Our Ol' Fella every day at trackwork since our move to Ascot," Wolfe said. "When the horse hit a losing streak recently, some of the owners said we should change from Shaun, who has been the horse's regular rider.

"But I insisted that we should stick with Shaun, who has been very loyal to our stable. It was not the jockey's fault that this horse wasn't winning."

Drama unfolded as stewards dismissed a protest against winner Morant ($2.80 fav.) after he rocketed home from 11th at the turn to score in the playeronline.com.au Handicap (1200m) by a short head from Our Larrkin ($6.50).

Morant, ridden by William Pike, hung in and brushed Our Larrikin in the last 75m, prompting the runner-up's rider Shaun O'Donnell to lodge an objection.

Pike and O'Donnell conducted a lively debate in the stewards' room, arguing on whether the interference had stopped Our Larrikin from winning.

"We agree there has been contact between the horses, but it was not enough to change the result," stewards' chairman Brad Lewis said.

Morant, owned by Bob and Sandra Peters, was yesterday having his first race since a transfer to the father and son training team of Ross and Clint Price. The chestnut had been a minor placegetter for trainer Graeme Ballantyne at his previous two starts.

"The horse has been with us only a few weeks and we're still getting to know him," Ross Price said. "We'll take him along one race at a time and his long-term program has yet to be set."