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Classy galloper Mr Malek again proved his naysayers wrong with his second win in a row over the six furlongs in the $100,000 Korea Racing Authority Trophy, a Class 1 race on Saturday.

A month after he ran an encouraging third to Lim's Kosciuszko first-up in the Group 1 Kranji Mile (1600m) on May 20, Mr Malek was brought back in trip to 1200m in the Group 3 Kranji Sprint, where he got up by a head from Kharisma to hand trainer Steven Burridge his first Group win in nearly two years.

Prior to that, Burridge's last Group race hurrah was in the 2021 Group 2 Stewards' Cup (1600m), coincidentally also won by the same Mr Malek and with jockey A'Isisuhairi Kasim, better known as Harry, astride.

While Burridge noticed that the six-year-old son of Swiss Ace had lost his zip over the years compared to his career early door when he scored five consecutive wins over the 1200m under the care of ex-Kranji handler Lee Freedman, it was evident that with another freshen-up, Mr Malek could put the sprinting prowess in him to winning effect.

The $42-shot settled just outside of City Gold Forward (Simon Kok Wei Hoong) towards the rear of the 13-horse field from the get-go and quietly bided his time while Illustrious (Zyrul Nor Azman) and Fame Star (Jerlyn Seow) burned up the tracks in front.

Harry made his move on Mr Malek at the bend and swung him out the widest upon straightening. Lamplighter Illustrious looked home for his first win on the turf at the 250m, but last-start winner The August (Daniel Moor) and favourite General Command (Manoel Nunes) soon came rattling home on his outside.

While the duo was under the pump in the final furlong, Mr Malek came storming home to blows his rivals late in the piece. This time, he won by a neck from the brave The August.

General Command ran third another one-and-a-half lengths away. The winning time was 1 min 9.26secs for the 1200m on the Short Course.

While it was evident that Mr Malek has come back to form recently after he survived the surgery to remove a cancerous lump in his neck late last year, Burridge thought that the gut-busting run in itself deserved kudos.

"It was worrying before because it was something we could not pinpoint (the neck cancer), but now, he has come back better than ever since the operation," said the veteran Australian conditioner.

"His third in the Kranji Mile was fantastic and then he won in the Kranji Sprint, which was a phenomenal effort.

"Today, he drew wide and we had to go back, but we know he would hit the line good.

"We thought it'd be a bit too short for him and it's a big field, but this horse has a big heart. He'd lost his speed now so we have to ride him quieter and Harry did a good job on him."

Owned by Phua Chian Kin of the Oscar Racing Stable, Mr Malek has now won 10 races in 31 starts, amassing close to $920,000 in prizemoney for connections.

His outstanding wins in the two races over the sprints recently warranted Burridge's pick for him in the upcoming two Legs of the reinstated STC Super Sprint series, the Group 3 Rocket Man Sprint (1200m) on August 6 and the Group 1 Lion City Cup (1200m) on August 27, but it was more to maintain his fitness while working towards his ultimate goal in the Singapore Triple Crown series.

"We'll run him in the Rocket Man Sprint next, and then probably the Lion City Cup too," said Burridge, who also pulled off a double on Saturday with Ima ($25) winning the $50,000 Class 4 race (1600m) five races earlier.

"There are no other races for him as his ratings are high. We'll have to keep him ticking over, otherwise it'd be too long in between races.

"Then, we'll step him up to the Raffles Cup, the Queen Elizabeth II Cup and the Gold Cup."

Held on September 23, the Group 1 Raffles Cup (1600m) will be the kick-off point for the Triple Crown series, followed by the Group 1 QE II Cup (1800m) on October 14 and the final Leg of the Group 1 Singapore Gold Cup (2000m) on November 11.

Harry, who has partnered Mr Malek to his last six wins, was elated with the win.

"Mr Malek is back," exclaimed the Kelantan-born jockey who now sits sixth on the jockeys' log on 19 wins.

"I love him a lot. He's such a trier. Last year, he had to deal a lot with the (neck) cancer. This year, he came back strongly.

"Everyone thought it's too sharp for him over the 1200m, but he proved again today that he's the better horse.

"It's a strong race but I know him very well. I think he can do well in the Gold Cup.

"When we saw that barrier (12), we thought that there's nothing to worry about. I knew there will be a good speed to the race and I'm happy to leave him alone early.

"When I got him balanced at the top of the straight, he knew where the winning line was."