Jockey Craig Williams has atoned for missing the ride on Melbourne Cup winner Dunaden by steering the six-year-old to victory in the Hong Kong Vase (2400m) at Sha Tin on Sunday.

The Australian hoop missed the Cup ride last month due to suspension but he went some way to making up for the lost ride by winning the Group 1 event in Hong Kong aboard the race favourite.

It was Dunaden's first run since winning at Flemington on November 1 and was up against Cup runner-up Red Cadeaux who finished in a dead heat for third with Silver Pond in the mile-and-a-half race.

Australian jockeys nabbed the quinella in the race with Brett Prebble riding the second-placed Thumbs Up.

It was a ninth career win in 29 starts for the Mikel Delzangles-trained Dunaden including its past three races - the Geelong Cup, the Melbourne Cup and the Vase.