Daintree Emperor was the fastest of 12 heat winners on Tuesday night.

VERSATILE DAINTREE IMPRESSES IN CLASSIC

Pre-series favourite Proven Nitro marched into the semi-finals of the Group 2 Warrnambool Classic (450m) with a convincing six length heat win on Tuesday night, however the dual group winner was surprisingly beaten for time by Daintree Emperor.

Trained by Lauren Gorman, Daintree Emperor won the 12th and final heat in the sensational time of 25.13sec, and in doing so he extended his record to 10 wins from 24 starts.

Meanwhile, Proven Nitro was the second fastest heat winner in 25.21sec for Jason Thompson, who had another quick heat winner named Powerhouse.

Gorman was delighted with Daintree Emperor, who showed his versatility in dropping back to 450m after winning in quick time over 595m at Sandown last month.