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Gallant grey mare Miss Dusty battled hard to the line to post a narrow second-up win in the $70,000 Kranji Stakes C Division 2 race over 1200m on Sunday.

It is the third time the Reliable Man four-year-old has prevailed at her second start after a break, a clear indication some horses improve out of sight with one warm-up run under the belt.

Kept in the firing line behind leader Caorunn (Chin Chee Seng), Miss Dusty ($28) skipped clear once she was set alight by jockey Ben Thompson 400m out.

The resuming Eagle Eye (Vlad Duric) was not beyond striking distance, though, when he jumped out of the ground at the 200m marker, but after the pair bumped a little in the shadows of the winning post as they laid in under pressure, it was the mare who got the edge by a short head.

Favourite Elite Conquest (Glen Boss) had every conceivable chance when he loomed up three wide, but he could not quite draw on terms with the first two, settling for third place another 1 ½ lengths away.

The run of the race was Lord Of Cloud (Troy See) who charged home late for fourth place, just missing a podium spot by a short head. The winning time was 1min 12.22secs for the 1200m on the Polytrack.

The win was, however, not officially validated until an objection lodged by Duric for allegedly losing momentum when Thompson’s whip hit his mount’s head was heard. After a quick deliberation, the objection was dismissed.

Trainer Cliff Brown’s assistant-trainer Tim Fitzsimmons said that Miss Dusty came off a tough race at her comeback in a Class 3 race over 1200m on February 6, but as a trade-off, that first spin did her fitness a world of good.

“She had to push hard at her last start, she overdid it a bit,” said Fitzsimmons.

“Today, she travelled well within herself. Her second-up record is great, it’s three from three now.

“We’ll see how much improvement will come out of that race. Time will tell.”

Thompson said Miss Dusty carried a bit of class about her, and expected her to make further headway.

“She benefitted a lot from her first run. She needed to blow the cobwebs,” said the Australian lightweight jockey.

“She was very strong to the line. She’s got some class that mare.

“I wasn’t too worried about Vlad’s objection as he never stopped riding his horse in his usual style.”

That third win has now swollen Miss Duty’s total stakes money past the $160,000 mark for the Tarnpirr Stable.