Tis Marvellous again in Shergar Cup Dash

Flying start for Stott and Rest of the World at Ascot.

Tis Marvellous got the Rest of the World team and Danish jockey Kevin Stott off to a flying start with a narrow victory in the opening race of the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup at Ascot.

The Clive Cox-trained gelding was a 9-2 joint-favourite to record a second win in the five-furlong Shergar Cup Dash, having struck gold for Hollie Doyle and the Ladies Team in 2018.

After tracking the pace-setting King Of Stars for much of the race on the far side of the track, Tis Marvellous moved powerfully to the lead inside the final two furlongs and briefly looked set to score decisively.

However, both 6-1 shot Desert Safari and the other joint-favourite Magical Spirit flashed home in the group that raced nearer the stands side, and there was little to choose between the trio passing the post.

After a brief wait, the judge confirmed Tis Marvellous had held on by a short head from Desert Safari, with Magical Spirit the same distance further away in third.

Stott said: “I thought I would try to get a nice lead and see if he (King Of Stars) could take me there, and he took me the furthest.

“I sat on him as long as possible. He’s a gentleman of a horse who made my job easy on that nice, soft ground.”

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