After battling around the south coast of New South Wales for a few seasons and the Victoria provincial circuit for another, the six-year-old Dubawi (IRE) gelding Jungle Edge has finally come of age, earning his maiden stakes success in Saturday's $150,000 Group III E-Group Security Star Kingdom Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill Gardens.
The wet track specialist was coming off a career highlight third in the Group I The Galaxy behind Russian Revolution and Redzel at Rosehill last week.
Sent straight to the front by veteran horseman Kevin Forrester, the Mick Bell-trained gelding made every post a winner.
Throttled down in the closing stages, Jungle Edge won untroubled by two lengths from Dal Cielo (Per Incanto) with Impending (Lonhro) one and three-quarter length back in third. (photo Steve Hart).
The victory was a great fillip for Mick Bell who recently lost his wife Bev to breast cancer.
"I had an angel on my shoulder there," Bell said.
"I wish Bev was here but all the support I've had from everybody has been so touching.
"He's a great horse. He's
"Some people want to think that he's just a wet-tracker, all right let them think that, but he isn't just a wet-tracker – he's a good horse.
"Dreams come true sometimes don't they."
The best of four winners from as many to race out of the winning Carnegie mare Jungle Girl, Jungle Edge advances his overall record to 10 wins, 3 seconds and 6 thirds from 34 starts with earnings of $368,010.
Jungle Girl is a half-sister to the dam of dual Listed stakes winner Brief Kiss (Brief Truce) and a half-sister to Sydney winner Jewel Of Africa the dam of the stakes-placed Picholine (Dehere), herself the dam of Group I Victoria Derby winner and Group I South Australia Derby winner Rebel Raider (Reset) as well as the talented Group III winner Shamoline Warrior (Shamardal).
Jungle Girl has not had a live foal since Jungle Edge. After not having a mare return submitted for three years, she was dropped from the official records in 2016.
Jungle Edge becomes the 128th stakes winner for former Darley shuttler Dubawi (IRE).
