Saeed bin Suroor claims third Royal Hunt Cup as Wild Tiger holds on to deny late-charging Sonny Liston

He might not have the firepower of old but Saeed bin Suroor proved class is permanent as the mainstay trainer of Godolphin registered his 39th Royal Ascot success with Hunt Cup scorer Wild Tiger.

Among current trainers, only Aidan O'Brien, Sir Michael Stoute and John Gosden have saddled more winners at the royal meeting, although Wild Tiger was only the third success at the meeting this decade for Bin Suroor.

Having seen his string fall from 250 at the height of its power to just 40 at his base in Newmarket, Bin Suroor has watched the quality ebb away in recent years but was still able to unearth a third Royal Hunt Cup winner under Oisin Murphy.

"The numbers are getting smaller but sometimes we have luck," said Bin Suroor. "Last year we had Mawj, she won the 1,000 Guineas and a Grade 1 in America, and this year we have Wild Tiger, who is a winner at Ascot. We're always searching for something but it's not easy for the stable."

Wild Tiger edged out Sonny Liston to win the Royal Hunt CupCredit: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)

Wild Tiger took his unbeaten record in Britain to four as he charged up the centre of the track and, with only six career runs to his name, it was no surprise to hear Bin Suroor talking of Group races in the future.

He added: “I said to Oisin, 'Keep out of the way of the others, this was my chance to have a winner here!' He’s a top-class jockey and he did it very well. We'll start looking for a Group race for him — he's not going to be a handicapper. We'll keep him at a mile for now, he's got plenty of speed, and then maybe look at going a mile and a quarter later on."

The victory made it a day-two double for Oisin Murphy after Running Lion's success in the Duke of Cambridge Stakes and put him clear at the top of the rider standings for the week after Asfoora's Group 1 strike on day one.

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

"With a small team Saeed is still very hungry to achieve at this sort of event. Saeed provided me with my first Royal Ascot winner [Benbatl] and he's given me another one today. He's been integral in my career."

After drawing a blank last year, the win was significant for Godolphin too, especially after Notable Speech failed to justify favouritism for trainer Charlie Appleby in Tuesday's St James's Palace Stakes.

Murphy added: "I'm very grateful to Saeed, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed and all the people who work for Godolphin. It's a huge operation and these successes are important."

For the second year running, Sonny Liston filled the runner-up spot, with Perotto and Daysofourlives completing the first four places.

"He's run a blinder and outrun last year's effort by a mile," said Sonny Liston's rider Rossa Ryan.

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