It was a Magic Millions that left punters holding their breath long after the horses had cleared the track and for Gai Waterhouse it was a very unique situation.

Whichever way the protest went between Driefontein and No Looking Back she was set to be the winner but it was hard to fully appreciate knowing one set of connections was about to be crushed.

“It is a great sadness when people see their horses go across the line and they think they have won a $2 million race and then it changes but that is life, we move on,” she said.

“I felt so sad for them (connections of No Looking Back), I felt sorry for them but I also felt great joy for the connections of Driefontein.

“You can’t describe it, it was very hard.”

One thing that both lots of owners will be able to appreciate though is that each horse is well on the path towards the Golden Slipper.

How they get there will be key now with three months until the world’s richest juvenile race but Waterhouse is confident both horses can make the grade.

“They are very exciting, I’ve always said they are Golden Slipper material,” she said.

“The two of them are very professional, what you see is what you get, you press the button and they do exactly what the jockeys want.”

While Waterhouse’s target is clear that’s not the case for the trainers of the horses further back in the field.

Amorino was the subject of a huge betting plunge before the race but after box seating failed to fire and came home in sixth.

No issues were found in the aftermath and Gerald Ryan thinks maybe the occasion was just a little much for him.

“I went over his legs thoroughly and pushed and prodded but there is nothing wrong with him,” Ryan said.

“I think the horse may have been a little hesitant in between horses in a big field like that, it was something he hadn’t experienced before and he just didn’t look comfortable.”

Ryan isn’t sure he’ll follow the road towards the Golden Slipper either saying his horse may be suited over a little more ground.

“A lot will depend on how he comes back from a let-up but I wouldn’t be surprised if he just goes towards the Sires’ Produce and then Champagne Stakes,” he said.