So it was a shock to both the owners and his trainer-driver, Ken Barron, when he failed to play his part at the start of the $14,999 Roxburgh Cup yesterday.
The son of Live Or Die was starting off the 30m mark in the 2700m pace, but Barron estimated that while Awesum Teddy was getting a flying start from his 10m mark, Comply Or Die was adding to his.
''When the starter called us in to line, he wouldn't turn and I was probably 10m or 15m behind the barrier, so he's actually gone off a bigger mark,'' Barron said.
The stubbornness and slowness away surprised part-owner and co-breeder Brian Leonard, too, but Comply Or Die made up for it as he quickly got in to his pacing action.
Barron found a gap on the inside of the track in the home straight to give Comply Or Die his ninth win at 33 attempts.
''Ken's always said right from the start he's a nice horse,'' Leonard said.
''He said if we look after him, he'll be a cup horse. He's so consistent - he just doesn't let us down. He's done a marvellous job.''
The story of Comply Or Die begins with a gift to Leonard from a late friend.
''I got given the horse by Tony Maxwell,'' Leonard explained.
''We raced Mood Indigo's half-sister Itsa Trick [six wins].
''This mare [Mood Indigo] came up and Tony gifted it to me before he died.''
Leonard and Geraldine horseman Doug Gillespie began breeding from the Caprock mare and - after a Tinted Cloud filly died - Comply Or Die was the result.
Leonard and Gillespie also have a 2yr-old colt by Sands A Flyin, and a Live Or Die yearling colt, while Mood Indigo is in foal to new sire Betterthancheddar after recently foaling a Live Or Die filly.
Comply Or Die had his first taste of the big time when he finished fifth in the Central Otago Trotting Cup on Thursday, although the nerves may have been showing before the race.
''At Omakau, he was that wound up - he was kicking and biting and he's never done that before,'' Leonard said.
''We were happy with his run. We were only 3.5 lengths from the winner and they were cup horses.''
Leonard and Gillespie race Comply Or Die with Gus Cuthbertson, a former colleague of Leonard's at the Pareora freezing works, and Russell Aitkenhead, a friend of Cuthbertson's from Nelson.
Barron said time had been Comply Or Die's friend, as is often the case with the progeny of Live Or Die.
''He's always been a nice horse. We turned him out at 2 because he was so big,'' Barron said.
''He's just getting a bit better each year. He may go to Menangle for an M0 [metropolitan maiden] - he's still an M0 in Australia.''
