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FULL COVERAGE: Bendigo Cup 2016
GODOLPHIN trainer Charlie Appleby has become the first international raider to win the Jayco Bendigo Cup, as Francis Of Assisi stormed to victory in Wednesday's Group 3 feature race.
The English-trained galloper became the second Godolphin horse to land a Victorian country cup in eight days, after Qewy claimed the Group 3 Geelong Cup last Wednesday.
Both were ridden by 2000 Melbourne Cup winning jockey Kerrin McEvoy.
It was the first Bendigo Cup triumph for McEvoy, who was a stable rider for the global Godolphin stable for 11 years until his resignation in 2014.
St Francis of Assisi ($6.50) finished three lengths ahead of his nearest rival Second Bullet, from the Flemington stable of Danny O'Brien.
Race favourite Our Century ($2.30) was third for Mount Macedon-based Robert Hickmott.
The only locally-trained galloper in the race Desert Samurai ran a bold race for trainer Adam O'Neill, but died on his run midway down the long Bendigo straight to finish sixth, 9.1 lengths from the winner.
Godolphin is poised to bypass the $6.2m Melbourne Cup with Francis Of Assissi, who will instead be aimed at either the Group 3 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2500m) at Flemington on day four of the carnival, or the Listed Sandown Cup (3200m) in November.
McEvoy said the seven-year-old gelding had shown good form in two races during the UK season earlier this year.
"He's travelled out here with some mates that have already performed well in good races; there was a good feeling about the stable," he said.
"It depends what races he goes through, whether I stick with him.
"If he goes to the Queen Elizabeth Stakes or the Sandown Cup I could ride him again, but that depends on what the team does."
McEvoy had no reservations renewing his association with Godolphin.
The English team are having a good run at the moment," McEvoy said.
"I've said to James and the team that they should bring about 20 next year, and come out about July.
"I was expecting the Lloyd (Williams) horse (Our Century) to be coming hard, but I had too much of a break.
"I was quite surprised when I saw the big screen how much I was in front."
It was a jubilant first foray into Bendigo for trainer Appleby's travelling foreman James Ferguson.
"It worked out pretty well," he said.
"I quite like these Cups at the moment. Let's hope we win the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday.
"He was given another really good ride by Kerrin. The pace of the race suited (the horse) perfectly and he just kept going."
Francis Of Assisi has mixed his racing on the flat and over the hurdles throughout his career and had won six of his 16 starts before heading to Australia.
Meanwhile, top trainer Darren Weir has abandoned plans of a Melbourne Cup tilt with Howard Be Thy Name, after the top-weight finished a disappointing fifth in the Cup.
He is instead bound for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.