Royal Hunt Cup
Heritage Handicap, Ascot 17:05 £175,000 guaranteed, 3yo plus, 7f 213y, Class 2
Tweet Wednesday 19th June 2024

1 Wild Tiger 11/2J
2 Sonny Liston 17/2
3 Perotto 25/1
4 Daysofourlives 20/1
29 ran NR: Imperial Fighter, Silent Film
Distances: hd, ¾l, ½l Time: 1m 38.20s (fast by 0.70s)

It's @oismurphy again! Wild Tiger wins the Royal Hunt Cup at Royal @Ascot! pic.twitter.com/yyZB80mf8k

— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 19, 2024

Oisin Murphy notched his third winner at this year’s meeting on the Saeed bin Suroor-trained Wild Tiger.

Murphy kept things simple on the five-year-old, who led a small group up the middle of the course, and while challenges came thick and fast in the closing stages, he kept pulling out more. 

Top-weight Sonny Liston came late under Rossa Ryan, ultimately going down by a head, while Perotto finished third, a further three-quarters of a length adrift. Daysofourlives and Holloway Boy filled the other minor places.

Wild Tiger, a son of Frankel who was homebred by Godolphin, ran two good races at Meydan in the winter and then scored at Yarmouth and Goodwood before landing today’s featured handicap.

Bin Suroor said: “Wild Tiger is doing good. I always liked him. Last year he had some tiny problems and I stopped running him. This year he is doing good and physically he looked much better when he arrived back in Newmarket from Dubai. We will look for a Group race for him now, but I think we will keep him at a mile.

“The numbers [in the yard] are now small; we just have 40 horses, but luckily sometimes we have luck with some of them. Last year it was Mawj in the 1,000 Guineas; this year it is Wild Tiger. We are always searching for something. It isn’t easy.

“In the past I used to have 220 horses. Now we have 40 horses and unfortunately they are not that good. We have to keep a small number that we think might do something, but the majority of them are not very good, which isn’t easy for the stable. We try to keep everybody happy and luckily this horse has won at Royal Ascot and that means big things for everybody. We have to keep up our enthusiasm for it because we don’t have a choice. We have to do our best with what we have, but winning a race at Royal Ascot makes it easier! 

“I am always happy when I win a race with a class horse. I said to Oisin, keep out of the way of the others! I said that this was my chance to have a winner here. He’s a top-class jockey and he did it very well.”

Murphy said: “Saeed provided me with my first Royal Ascot winner [Benbatl in 2017] and he's given me another one today. 

“Saeed has been integral in my career. I am very grateful to him and his Highness Sheikh Mohammed, and all the people who work for Godolphin. It's a huge operation and these successes are important.

"Wild Tiger got the mile well, he relaxed brilliantly. He had the perfect preparation and Saeed was very confident – he told me I'd win and I'm glad we got it done.

“Wild Tiger is very clever. He conserves energy all the way and then, when you ask him, he’s instant. I knew I had used up a little bit of energy in that forward position and that I was a good target for the horses behind, but I had a horse who was well weighted and perfectly prepared.”

Royal Hunt Cup Heritage Handicap (Str)
£175,000 guaranteed, 3yo plus, 7f 213y, Class 2
29 ran
Going: Good to Firm

POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (20)    Wild Tiger 5 9-0 Saeed bin Suroor Oisin Murphy 11/2J
2 (19) hd Sonny Liston 5 9-13 Ralph Beckett Rossa Ryan 17/2
3 (17) ¾ Perotto 6 9-3 Roger Varian Tom Marquand 25/1
4 (10) ½ Daysofourlives 4 8-13 Marco Botti Luke Morris 20/1
5 (23) ¾ Holloway Boy 4 9-7 K R Burke Sam James 22/1
611 (22) hd Coeur d'Or 8 9-2 D K Weld Chris Hayes 12/1
7 (8) ¾ Metal Merchant 4 8-13 Jack Channon David Probert 18/1
8 (18) ½ King's Code 4 8-9 David Evans Silvestre De Sousa 40/1
9 (30) 1½ Fantastic Fox 6 8-13 Roger Varian Aidan Keeley 33/1
10 (12) ¾ Ropey Guest 7 9-2 George Margarson Tom Queally 40/1
11 (16) 1 Sean 7 9-10 Jamie Osborne Saffie Osborne 33/1
12 (2) hd Mirsky 5 8-13 David O'Meara Maxime Guyon 80/1
13 (28) ¾ Bless Him 10 9-2 David Simcock Jamie Spencer 28/1
14 (21) nse Eldrickjones 5 8-8 Roger Fell & Sean Murray Billy Loughnane 66/1
15 (11) 1 Talis Evolvere 4 9-2 Richard Hannon Joe Leavy 25/1
16 (25) nse Dutch Decoy 7 8-9 Charlie Johnston Joe Fanning 33/1
17 (32) ¾ Crack Shot 4 8-8 Ed Walker Mickael Barzalona 11/2J
18 (31) ¾ Regheeb 4 8-8 Archie Watson Hollie Doyle 33/1
19 (1) hd Aerion Power 6 9-2 5ex Sir Michael Stoute Ryan Moore 33/1
20 (24) nse Raadobarg 6 9-5 George Boughey David Egan 40/1
21 (27) 1¾ Blue For You 6 9-1 David O'Meara Daniel Tudhope 28/1
22 (9) 2¾ Beshtani 4 9-6 H Al Jehani James Doyle 13/2
23 (14) ½ The Gatekeeper 5 9-2 Charlie Johnston Neil Callan 40/1
24 (7) 1¼ Kingdom Come 5 9-9 Clive Cox Richard Kingscote 66/1
25 (5) 1½ Streets Of Gold 4 9-6 Eve Johnson Houghton Charles Bishop 28/1
26 (3) 1 Thunder Ball 4 9-1 Paul & Oliver Cole Alec Voikhansky 33/1
27 (4) 1½ Tempus 8 8-12 Archie Watson Kieran Shoemark 33/1
28 (29) hd Real Gain 4 9-3 Richard Hughes William Buick 9/1
29 (15) 2 Padishakh 4 9-2 David O'Meara Sean Levey 80/1
NR 19 (13) Silent Film 6 9-0 Ian Williams NON RUNNER
NR 26 (26) Imperial Fighter 5 8-11 Jamie Osborne NON RUNNER

Past results

2023-WINNER-JIMI HENDRIX Ralph Beckett Rossa Ryan Chelsea Thoroughbreds, E Lam Shin Cheung Et Al 4 9-05 22/1

2022-WINNER-DARK SHIFT Charles Hills James McDonald Craycroft Racing LLC & Riverside Bloodstock LLC 4 9-01 13/2

2021-WINNER-REAL WORLD Saeed bin Suroor Marco Ghiani Godolphin 4 8-09 18/1

2020-WINNER-DARK VISION Mark Johnston William Buick Godolphin 4-9-01 15/2

2019-WINNER-AFAAK Charlie Hills Jim Crowley Hamdan Al Maktoum 5-9-03 20/1

2018-WINNER-SETTLE FOR BAY David Marnane IRE Billy Lee McGettigans Management JLT/M Casey 4-9-01 16/1

2017-WINNER-ZHU FENG 4-9-00 Owner-John Connolly & Odile Griffith; Trainer-Amanda Perrett; Jockey-Martin Dwyer; SP-25/1
2ND-Blair House 4-8-11 Owner-Godolphin; Trainer-Charlie Appleby; Jockey-Mickael Barzalona; SP-16/1
3RD-Tashweeq 4-9-06 Owner-Hamdan Al Maktoum; Trainer-John Gosden; Jockey-Dane O’Neill; SP-66/1
4TH-Ballet Concerto 4-9-02 Owner-Saeed Suhail; Trainer-Sir Michael Stoute; Jockey-Ryan Moore; SP-20/1
29 ran; Time-1m 37.82s; Dist-½, nk, 1¾ 13/2 Fav Abe Lincoln (15th)

2016-WINNER-PORTAGE 4-9-05 Owner-Godolphin; Trainer-Michael Halford IRE; Jockey-James Doyle; SP-10/1
2ND-Librisa Breeze 4-8-11 Owner-Tony Bloom; Trainer-Dean Ivory; Jockey-Robert Winston; SP-8/1
3RD-Mitchum Swagger 4-9-08 Owner- Paul Dean & the Mitchum Swagger P’Ship; Trainer-David Lanigan; Jockey-George Baker; SP- 14/1
4TH-Azraff 4-8-13 Owner-Saleh Al Homaizi & Imad Al Sagar; Trainer-Marco Botti; Jockey-Andrea Atzeni; SP-20/1
28 ran; Time-1m 43.01s; Dist-11⁄4, nk, 1⁄2 13/2 Fav Convey (22nd)

2015-WINNER-GM HOPKINS 4-9-03 Owner-Robin Geffen; Trainer-John Gosden; Jockey-Ryan Moore; SP-8/1
2ND-Temptress 4-8-12 Owner-The Pyoneers; Trainer-Roger Charlton; Jockey-James Doyle; SP-9/1
3RD-Chil The Kite 6-9-08 Owner-Hazel Lawrence & Graham Doyle; Trainer-Hughe Morrison; Jockey-George Baker; SP-16/1
4TH-Balty Boys 4-8-12 Owner-Koo’s Racing Club, Carr & Jacobs; Trainer-Brian Ellison; Jockey-Silvestre de Sousa; SP-25/1 30 ran; Time-1m 40.30s; Dist-nk, 11⁄2, 1⁄2 7/1 Fav Ayaar (9th)

2014-WINNER-FIELD OF DREAM 7-9-01 Owner-N Jackson; Trainer-Jamie Osborne; Jockey-Adam Kirby; SP-20/1
2ND-Chil The Kite 5-9-09 Owner-Hazel Lawrence & Graham Doyle; Trainer-Hughie Morrison; Jockey-George Baker; SP-14/1
3RD-Steeler 4-9-06 Owner-Godolphin; Trainer-Charlie Appleby; Jockey-Silvestre de Sousa; SP-33/1
4TH-Sea Shanty 4-8-12 Owner-The Queen; Trainer-Richard Hannon; Jockey-Richard Hughes; SP-14/1
28 ran; Time-1m 37.88s; Dist-11⁄4, 11⁄4, sh 7/2 Fav Abseil (8th)

2013-WINNER-BELGIAN BILL 5-8-11 Owner-PJL Racing, Byrne, Baker; Trainer-George Baker; Jockey-James Doyle; SP-33/1
2ND-Premio Loco 9-9-09 Owner-Bernard Westley; Trainer-Chris Wall; Jockey-George Baker; SP- 40/1
3RD-Arsaadi 4-8-12 Owner-Sultan Ali; Trainer-William Haggas; Jockey-Liam Jones; SP-50/1
4TH-Don’t Call Me 6-9-05 Owner-Matt & Lauren Morgan; Trainer-David Nicholls; Jockey-Pat Dobbs; SP-25/1
28 ran; Time-1m 38.68s; Dist-3⁄4, 1⁄2, 1⁄2 10/1 Co Favs Two For Two (12th), Fury (18th), Stirring Ballad (22nd)

2012-WINNER-PRINCE OF JOHANNE 6-9-03 Owner-David Storey; Trainer-Tom Tate; Jockey-John Fahy; SP-16/1
2ND-Excellent Guest 5-8-11 Owner-John Guest Racing; Trainer-George Margarson; Jockey-Tom Queally; SP-33/1
3RD-Don’t Call Me 5-8-08 Owner-Matt & Lauren Morgan; Trainer-David Nicholls; Jockey-Sam Hitchcott; SP-50/1
4TH-Field Of Dream 5-9-00 Owner-Ken Gundlach; Trainer-Jamie Osborne; Jockey-Jamie Spencer; SP-66/1
30 ran; Time-1m 38.24s; Dist-1⁄2, 3⁄4, nk 9/2 Fav Dimension (8th)

2011-WINNER-JULIENAS 4-8-08 Owner-Peter Harris; Trainer-Walter Swinburn; Jockey-Eddie Ahern; SP-12/1
2ND-Dance And Dance 5-9-03 Owner-Mohammed Rashid; Trainer-Ed Vaughan; Jockey-Ryan Moore; SP-7/1 Fav
3RD-Invisible Man 5-9-06 Owner-Godolphin; Trainer-Saeed bin Suroor; Jockey-Frankie Dettori; SP-20/1
4TH-Pendragon 8-8-04 Owner-Dan Gilbert & Kristian Strangeway; Trainer-Brian Ellison; Jockey-Jimmy Quinn; SP-33/1
28 ran; Time-1m 38.53s; Dist-1⁄2, 2, ns

2010-WINNER-INVISIBLE MAN 4-8-09 Owner-Godolphin; Trainer-Saeed bin Suroor; Jockey-Frankie Dettori; SP-28/1
2ND-Riggins 6-9-00 Owner-Dubai Thoroughbred Racing; Trainer-Andrew Balding; Jockey-Jimmy Fortune; SP-12/1 3RD-St Moritz 4-8-07 Owner-Renata Jacobs; Trainer-Mark Johnston; Jockey-Joe Fanning; SP-12/1
4TH-Tryst 5-8-05 Owner-Ms L A Morgan; Trainer-John Hammond FR; Jockey-Hayley Turner; SP-12/1
29 ran; Time-1m 37.16s; Dist-1⁄2, 1, 1 8/1 Fav Dandy Boy (21st)

2009-WINNER-FORGOTTEN VOICE 4-9-01 Owner-Susan Roy; Trainer-Jeremy Noseda; Jockey-Johnny Murtagh; SP-4/1 Fav
2ND-Huzzah 4-8-10 Owner-J Gale, J Finch, D Cole, Robin Dollar, David Powell; Trainer-Barry Hills; Jockey-Michael Hills; SP-25/1
3RD-Mia’s Boy 5-9-03 Owner-Iraj Parvizi; Trainer-Chris Dwyer; Jockey-Ryan Moore; SP-9/1
4TH-Nanton 7-8-06 Owner-Stuart Morrison; Trainer-Jim Goldie; Jockey-Daniel Tudhope; SP-16/1
25 ran; Time-1m 40.41s; Dist-21⁄4, 3⁄4, 11⁄2

2008-WINNER-MR AVIATOR 4-9-05 Owner-Sue Brendish; Trainer-Richard Hannon snr; Jockey-Richard Hughes; SP-25/1
2ND-Docofthebay 4-9-06 Owner-Paul Dixon; Trainer-Jamie Osborne; Jockey-Shane Kelly; SP-10/1
3RD-Royal Power 5-8-12 Owner-David Nicholls; Trainer-David Nicholls; Jockey-Adrian Nicholls; SP-25/1
4TH-Kavachi 5-8-04 Owner-Bryan Pennick & Roy Martin; Trainer-Gary Moore; Jockey-Franny Norton 33/1
29 ran, Time-1m 39.63s, Dist-nk, nk, 3⁄4 13/8 Fav Bankable (5th)