Trainer Grahame Begg is keeping things simple with progressive galloper King Zephyr, who will look to extend his winning streak at Flemington on Friday in the William Newton VC Handicap (1400m).

The four-year-old is unbeaten in his past three starts and has won four of his five career outings. He’s part-owned by former trainer Chris Hyland, who now works closely with Begg in his day-to-day operations.

King Zephyr kicked off his career with a debut win at Bendigo in March 2023, but has been lightly raced since, with Begg carefully spacing his runs. Following a single outing last August, the gelding returned this prep with wins at Pakenham and Sandown (twice) to build a strong record.

Friday marks a step up in class and distance, but Begg had this Flemington assignment penciled in following his latest Sandown victory.

“We’ve taken each step with him as it’s come,” Begg said.

“We’ve tried to keep him in his lane, pick off the right races as they come and we’re happy just taking the small steps at this stage.

“He’s got to a benchmark 78 on Friday and he comes back a little in weight. He had 61 kilos the other day and comes back 59-½ on Friday.”

To keep him ticking over, King Zephyr ran third in a 1000m Cranbourne jump-out on April 14, which Begg says served its purpose perfectly.

“He hasn’t run at 1400 metres yet, but he’s had two solid 1300-metre runs,” Begg said.

“He’s giving every indication the way he’s relaxing in his races the 1400 metres won’t be too much of a challenge.”

Jordan Childs retains the ride on King Zephyr, who is a commanding $1.70 favourite with early betting sites to keep his winning streak alive.