Well trialled six-year-old Tiger Tees has produced a strong turn of foot to hold on and claim a maiden Group 1 victory in The Galaxy (1100m) at Rosehill Gardens racecourse this afternoon ahead of a late charging Anatina and Villa Verde.

Tiger Tees has broken through for a maiden Group 1 victory in the 2014 The Galaxy. Photo: Steve Hart

Jumping from the stalls well, Tiger Tees settled in prime position on the heels of early leader Kencella over the back straight, rounding the bend well and finding a clear line upon entering the final straight, comfortably taking up the pace from the pre-post second-favourite and maintaining a strong sprint to find the line only a nose in the clear.

Having also saddled market mover and pre-post favourite Rain Affair, who was unable to match the late pace of his rivals finishing well within the pack, trainer Joseph Pride was delighted in Tiger Tees’ ability to break through for a maiden win at the highest level of Australian racing this afternoon.

“He loves the sting out of the track and perfect ride from Nash”

“He was always drawn to get a good run and it just panned out beautifully for him.

“You’ve got to put them in the right races and you could see that this obviously isn’t the race that the T.J. is but you’ve got to aim up at this and have the horse at the peak on the day.

The least favourite in betting markets of his three 2014 Galaxy entrants, Pride revealed he thought Tiger Tees would be taken in the late stages by See The World, who appeared to have received a much more favourable ride in the race’s earlier stages.

“I could not split them today; I actually thought maybe See The World, but I’m not sure he ended up on the right track there” Pride added.

“The old horse (Rain Affair) was a bit disappointing; I don’t what he’s doing slow away, he doesn’t really seem to have his mind on it today.”

In-form jockey Nash Rawiller delivered a perfectly timed ride on the talented Dubawi gelding, and was pleased to have reversed a poor result when blocked for a run and ninth with Tiger Tees in the Group 2 Challenge Stakes (1000m) last time out.

“Last start he tracked up beautifully behind the good horse Buffering and also Whittington and just got held up for a run most of the way up the straight, and had he had a run like he did today he would have been there at the finish” Rawiller said following The Galaxy.

“I thought it was Rain Affair that went round us mid-race and just put that bit of pressure back into the race because they settled down pretty soft I thought.

“I just wanted my bloke to be the last shot, but he’s hit the front at the 300 and it was a long 300 metres, I’ll tell you.”

Having secured a maiden Group 1 victory, Tiger Tees will now work towards and appearance in the Group 1 T.J. Smith Stakes (1200m) at Royal Randwick on April 12^th.

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2014 The Galaxy Results