They don't come any braver than Alligator Blood, and when gifted a soft lead, few can match him.
Ridden by Tim Clark for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, the 6yo son of All Too Hard stared down Zaaki at the 200m and safely held the finish of Mo'Unga inn a start-studded $1,000,000 Group 1 Quayclean Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Sandown Hillside on Sunday.
He defeated Mo'Unga (Savabeel) by three-quarters of a length, with Zaaki (GB) (Leroidesanimaux) a head back in third.
In earning his third Group 1 victory, Alligator Blood advances his record to eleven wins, four seconds, and a third from 23 starts with earnings of $3,609,250.
Co-trainer Adrian Bott said the WS Cox Plate is the target.
"Obviously, he's had a colourful career, and we feel privileged to have the opportunity to train the horse," Bott said.
"Mr Harvey, to entrust us with him, and very proud of the horse coming here today and out in trip first time. I love how he responded and kept fighting to take on a quality field with the pressure put on him early in the race. Fantastic win.
"Over that extra trip, he was able to find that nice rhythm, and he was able to maintain those sectionals at a good high cruising speed and he was able to find under pressure.
"It was a testing track here today, and I expect him to keep finding under pressure over a bit further as well."
Tim Clark said the race played out as expected.
"He got away well, and as planned, we wanted to show our intent early, then try and get him into a nice rhythm from 1400 metres, 1200 metres onward," Clark said.
"He travelled comfortably, and he seemed to be doing it well within himself. Zaaki did come and put the pressure on him and eyeball him (but) just felt that my horse had a bit to offer, my bloke, when we got down to the bottom of the dip.
"I thought he responded courageously, and probably just being that extra run into his prep I felt that Zaaki might have been a bit vulnerable late going to the 1800 second-up. I was always confident my bloke was going to fight hard.
"A very tenacious, very satisfying win.
"Apart from Anamoe, all the big guns were there. He's proven himself over 1800 on a big roomy track like this, so 2040m around The Valley, bring it on."
Bred by and now carrying the colours of Gerry Harvey, Alligator Blood sold for $55,000 to Allan Endresz's Ezybonds No 1 Syndicate at the 2018 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
He is the last foal of Lake Superior, an unraced half-sister by Encosta de Lago to stakes-winner Cantonese from the family of Australian Horse of the Year Typhoon Tracy.
All Too Hard stands at Vinery Stud in 2022 for a fee of $38,500.
