Jungle Cat tastes Group One glory in Australia
Charlie Appleby and James Doyle struck gold in Australia as Jungle Cat claimed the Group One Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes at Caulfield racecourse.
Winner of his three starts in Dubai in the spring, including the Al Quoz Sprint on World Cup night, the Iffraaj entire was given a fine ride by Doyle, cutting down Dollar For Dollar late in the day to score by a short head.
Land Of Plenty was the same distance back in third, in what was a thrilling finish.
Appleby told Racing.com: "It's great to have a Group One (winner) here and it was a fantastic ride by James.
"There was plenty of pace on, more than I thought there'd be to be honest. Once he levelled up and got stuck into him, he's not for lying down, old 'Cat', as we call him, and he dug deep.
"It was always our plan after the Al Quoz to come here, as there are not many Group Ones in Europe over seven furlongs and the ground is always on the easy side in France, where we would have potentially taken him (Prix de la Foret).
"The conditions were always going to suit him here, back on a sound surface."
He added: "I'm delighted for the horse, he's been so consistent all his life. We'll see what James has to say, then we'll regroup.
"It's great for Sheikh Mohammed and the team to be winning these Group One races around the world, it's what we're here to do."
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