Weona Smartone (Shamexpress) returned from an 11-week break to continue a streak which now stands at eight.

The five-year-old was a dual acceptor on Saturday but his trainer David Vandyke bypassed Doomben's George Moore Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) in favour of an open 1100-metre race at the Gold Coast, his first attempt in open company.

Widest into the straight, Weona Smartone accelerated quickly at the 100 metres and looked to put them away before Elixir (Exceed and Excel) went with him and the judge was called upon to separate them by a head.

Nonetheless, the Shamexpress (O'Reilly) gelding is indeed smart, giving 4.5 kilograms to the field when assigned 60.5 kilograms and will likely be better for the run.