Jockey Martin Harley will board a flight to England happy in the knowledge he is now a Group 1 winning jockey in Australia.
Harley guided Cool Archie home in the J J Atkins (1600m) at Eagle Farm on Saturday to go with previous Group 1 victories in France, the UK and Ireland.
Cool Archie ($4.80) held off a late bid by the $4.60 betting favourite Hidden Achievement to score by 1-¼ lengths with Call Da Vinci ($31) a half-length away third.
“I’m on a plane tonight going back for Royal Ascot,” Harley said.
“And I might fly that plane myself after that.”
Harley rode in Victoria in 2019 before returning to the UK for a season, but his hunger for more winners saw him return to Australia and base himself in Brisbane.
A fall a Doomben in the lead up to the 2023 Magic Millions Carnival on the Gold Coast left Harley with a broken neck, a second one for the unlucky rider who 10 years early suffered the same fate when riding in the UK.
Harley returned to race riding 12 months later to land a winner on Magic Millions Day, but Saturday’s success took it to another level.
“I think the horse has done most of the talking,” Harley said.
“He’s taken a big step forward each run and that’s what the good ones do.
“To transform from a Heavy 10 to a Good 4 there today, which I knew he would handle, I never had any doubt in that.
“I just watched the previous races, and I trusted my horse to pick up, but nothing had been making up bundles of ground, so I wanted to try and be that pair or two closer today.
“We got a lovely spot, a good rhythm, and I ended up getting there too soon but he’s got a good will to win, and he wanted it.”
The victory was a Group 1 first for father-and-son training partners Chris and Corey Munce.
Chris needs no introduction having been a successful jockey including winning the Melbourne Cup before turning his hand to training.
Corey joined his father in a training partnership this season and the pair had bagged 64 winners prior to Saturday’s victory.
“I’m a little speechless, as you’d probably expect, but I’ll try and keep it together,” Corey Munce said.
“I felt very comfortable throughout the run.
“I said (during the race) we’re right here, and if he’s good enough he can win.
“That was a bit of the worry, as he’d come from a long way back the other day from an awkward draw and we were just hoping from a slightly better draw he would be that touch closer, and it worked out beautifully today.”
